Adrian Desbarats Asks: What is Bamboo Clothing and Where Does Bamboo Come From?

(EMAILWIRE.COM, February 16, 2010 ) Emyvale, PEI - Adrian Desbarats, President of Fashion and Earth, said "As IÂ’m sure you have guessed, bamboo clothing comes from, wellÂ…Â…bamboo!

There are, in fact, over 1,000 species of bamboo growing throughout the world. You can find wild bamboo growing in Central America, South America, South Africa, India, East Asia, Japan and the north of Australia. Globally, bamboo covers approximately 49 million acres of the worldÂ’s surface."

Adrian continued his discussion, saying that the bamboo used in the textile trade comes almost exclusively from China primarily from the provinces of Fujian, Hunan, Zhejiang and Jiangxi.

"The bamboo used in our clothing is grown in China in the County of Shuangjiang under the management of Hebei Jigao Chemical Fiber Company Ltd. All of our bamboo is of the Moso species (Phyllostachys heterocycla var.pubescens) which is not the species eaten by the Panda bear. All of the Moso bamboo grown for use in our textiles is grown and certified organic following the National Organic Standard," Adrian continued.

The main structural component of bamboo (just as with all plants) is cellulose. Cellulose is the most abundant and renewable biopolymer on our planet. Cellulose forms the main building block of all plants and through simple chemical processes, this cellulose can be converted into a variety of useful materials, including textiles. Because cellulose can be derived from plants, this provides without a doubt, tremendous opportunity to create a sustainable means of textile production.

There are a variety of chemical processes used to produce textiles from cellulose, the most common being hydrolysis alkalization or the lyocell process. Both of these processes produce the same end result – regenerated cellulose or viscose cellulose which can then be formed into threads and spun into fabric.

Bamboo fabric formed in this fashion is commonly called rayon from bamboo or viscose bamboo. Even though bamboo derived rayon fabric is produced from a natural raw and sustainable material, it cannot be legally certified as organic because the process employed to produce the fabric is man made. If any company tells you their bamboo viscose fabric is certified organic, they are either lying or misled, period.

However, because the law does not allow us to certify bamboo textiles as organic, that does not mean this clothing is not eco-friendly. In fact, bamboo is extremely eco-friendly.

Given the rapid growth of bamboo and minimal resource requirements, it is generally considered to be one of the most sustainable sources of cellulose in the world. However, like any product or resource in this world, anything can be exploited and bamboo is no different. And that is where a customer must be diligent when choosing bamboo clothing.

Although we cannot legally certify bamboo fabric as organic, we can make sure that the raw bamboo has been grown in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner by a credible program such as the US National Organic Program, the European Organic standard or the Japan Organic standard.

In addition, make sure the viscose bamboo is certified by Oeko-Tex 100 or Oeko-Tex 1000 which provides very stringent chemical quality standards. This will ensure the viscose bamboo fabric was manufactured with minimal environmental impact.

Adrian concluded that "The simple reality is that as our global population grows and as more people move into the middle class, demand for sustainable clothing will increase. Given the fantastic growth rates of bamboo, itÂ’s resistance to pests (meaning no pesticides required) and itÂ’s ability to flourish without water or fertilizer supplementation, bamboo will play an important role in meeting our clothing needs into the future in a sustainable fashion."


Adrian Desbarats, President of Fashion and Earth, beginning with a background as a biologist, has a passionate desire to balance the needs of the environment with the needs of humans. Visit http://www.fashionandearth.com to shop for stylish and eco-friendly clothing for women.

Join a community of women who care about the future of their families, and the future of our planet. Visit http://www.fashionandearth.com.



Fashion and Earth
Adrian Desbarats
902-675-2217
adesbarats@fashionandearth.com