The fabric of our lives, or the fabrication of lies? Perhaps more than any other agricultural product, short-staple upland cotton (which accounts for 97% of USA cotton production) is the number one charlatan of our era. Enormous amounts of money has been spent in advertising and promotion to convince us that cotton is this wonderful, natural product that we all should support and purchase. In the past few decades, the myriad of products produced with 100% cotton have been produced and consumed at record levels under the guise that cotton is the choice of Mother Nature. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Next to corn, cotton is the largest agricultural product in the United States. The USA grows approximately 14 million acres of cotton, accounting for nearly 20% of the world’s supply. The tremendous expansion of cotton output has been accompanied by a proportionate increase in ecological damage, social deterioration and government malfeasance. Here are a few things to remember the next time you slip on one of your favorite cotton shirts:

Each year, nearly $2.6 billion worth of pesticides are applied to cotton fields worldwide, with approximately 35% of the total ending up on USA fields. In 2000, farmers in the main USA cotton growing states used over 75 million pounds of pesticides. These figures are easily "slipped under the radar" due to the misconception that cotton is not a food, so people are relatively unconcerned by this massive chemical use. The fact is that cotton is an important food product. In the USA alone, nearly 7 million pounds of cotton seed a year is used for cattle feed, both meat and dairy, as well as for the cottonseed oil commonly used in margarine, cookies, chips and other processed foods. As we ingest the products related to cotton in large quantities, there is a natural concern for our health and the health of future generations.

The unified cotton industry represents a $60 billion a year sector of our economy. It doesn’t take much of an imagination to realize the power the National Cotton Council wields in Washington. So far, seed and chemical companies have not been held responsible for damage caused by chemical runoff, water poisoning, gene transfer and other forms of pollution, potentially saving them billions of dollars. The U.S. government’s cotton subsidy program (established in the 1930's) creates huge economic benefits for industrial cotton growers in the form of contract payments and non-recourse government and banking loans. Who pays for all of this? You guessed it: the U.S. General Accounting Office estimates the American taxpayer pays out approximately $1.1 billion a year; and the cost is going up.

We could go on educating you about the state of the cotton industry, but since you’re online, you can do some research and find out the truth about cotton for yourself. Besides, you’re here to buy our Organic Cotton shirts. Thank you for reading (at least) this far and hopefully you will begin to become the difference and help us turn the tide of this horrible tragedy of industrial agriculture.