In 2021, 13.5 million hectares of cultivable land were used to grow cotton – in India alone, says this report by the leading analytics firm statista. That figure is not even semi-global in its coverage, yet it is scary to think about– and what’s more, it is expected to increase substantially by 2023. The question is that If Cotton & Polyester is so Bad Why There is No Other Alternative? Couple that with the waste-heavy processes of production of the various polyester fabrics and we have a nice little recipe for planetary resource debt. The cotton and polyester industries are not only saturated, they are also wasteful. For example, in their report titled “Water – The Next Carbon?”, The World Wildlife Fund has estimated that it currently takes around 5,000 liters of water to produce a single cotton T-shirt. There are numerous other problems with cotton and polyester that will be highlighted down the line in this article, but for now, suffice it to say that cotton and polyester are pretty taxing in multiple ways. But if cotton and polyester are so bad, why are they still so popular? Why are they still the preference of billions of people globally? Why is there no sustainable product that can be used as an alternative to them? These, and similar questions make up the content of this article, so without any further ado, let’s get right into the meat and potatoes of the article. Source Upfront Conclusion: What Is The Alternative Hemp, a plant that has been cultivated for millennia, may be just the solution to our dilemma. According to this study, published by McGill University, Canada, Hemp is one of the most sustainable plants for soil, giving back approximately 60% of the nutrients it takes. Hemp is also one of the most sustainable fabrics that one can buy in the market today, not just because of the nature of the raw plant, but also because of the properties of the fabric. S. # Property Of Hemp Fabric Numbers 1. Stretchability Medium (for fine threads) 2. Total Possible Thread Count 400+ 3. Average Thread Count 250 – 300 4. Shrinkage Low; pilling-resistant. 5. Breathability Very High 6. Moisture Wicking Capabilities Very High Source Image: A is the Complete Stress Curve of Hemp Fabrics: As you can see, it is highly durable. Advantages of Hemp Fabric: The advantages that hemp fabrics have over other textiles begin right from the pre-production process, and extend past the lifespan of the cloth. If the correct processes are used and are executed correctly, hemp fabric is almost texturally indistinguishable from the fan favorite, cotton, and is a very viable replacement for other fabrics too. Source Image: B is the detail of the initial nonlinear part of the stress curve for hemp fabrics, showing high resistance. Source The Polyester Production Process Polyester is a smooth, water-repellent fabric that is synthesized from petroleum. It is made from strands of polymers woven together. These polymers are called polyethylene terephthalate synthetics or PET synthetics for short. Think of it this way: at the very base level, polyester is basically a sheet of plastic that you can wear. That is why you may have also heard the term “PET bottles” or”PET containers”, because they are also made from a very similar polymer. The production of polyester products, of which synthesized fabrics are a big part, follows the following line: Source The Cotton Production Process Cotton and its derivatives are the most popular fabrics for clothes in the modern world, and most of the cotton used today comes from third-world countries. Cotton is a plant that is sown in late autumn and harvested at the turn of spring. Cotton usually grows best in climates that are hot, and where the summers last longer than is normal for the rest of the world. The basic production process that is followed to obtain cotton fabric has changed very little over the centuries, and it runs something like this: Source Cotton And Polyester Disadvantages Mass use aside, these two uber-popular fabrics have several demerits to their name, and these have been proven time and again with research. If cotton & Polyester is So Bad Why There is No Other Alternative? The main disadvantages of cotton and polyester are: This will create a waste management crisis of epic proportions in a couple decades, given that half of all clothes currently produced contain polyester. For example, polyester fabrics are not breathable, they dont wick moisture away, they are hard to get stains out of, and they are annoying to iron and dry. Cotton fabric too, has a shrinkage rate of anywhere between 4% to 10%, fades easily if proper dyes are not used, takes very long to dry because it retains water, and is a high(er) maintenance fabric on the whole. That is why we ask If cotton & Polyester is So Bad Why There is No Other Alternative? Source The Hemp Production Process Hemp fabric is made from the long, supple strands of fiber that bind together to make up the stalk and stem of the plant. These fibers are separated from each other and then go through various products to become yarn or fabric rolls. The Hemp fabric production process follows these lines: Leaving the plants standing in the field will do the job naturally, although some companies use chemicals to speed up the process. These chemically augmented hemp fabrics are usually labeled “Hemp Viscose”, so it is worth looking at the tags on fabrics. Why Are Hemp Fabrics Not More Popular If cotton & Polyester is So Bad Why There is No Other Alternative? Hemp is the alternate. The main reason why hemp fabrics are not more popular is because of the social stigma that its source plant (cannabis sativa) carries with it. Despite the extremely low amounts of THC that cannabis sativa contains, people still assume that it is a drug, and club the plant with other narcotics, harming its reputation. Other than […]
