Bamboozled?!...Freaking out!

[andrea909]

Thank you for this response, it actually made me feel a lot better.

[Liddle1]

I'm not worried about lead, I'm worried about formaldehyde and whatever else they use.

[coveredcaboose]

Yes. Most all "bamboo" fibers are Oeko Tek 100 certified, which can be followed up here:
http://www.oeko-tex.com/OekoTex100_PUBLIC/index.asp
It costs 1000's of dollars per year, and each step of the processing is followed to be sure the certification applies. So an oeko tek certified fabric is far safer than one with no certificate, because an outside source has tested for over 100 chemicals know to harm humans through wear.

With an organic certificate, all you get is that the fibers were organic when they left the farm. They are not tested post production unless it specifically stated.

I called and ordered some "organic" cotton today, in both fleece and velour. When i asked about this they said there is no truly organic fabric available there, only the fiber is organic.
SO frankly, the only thing that changed, is the name. Unless you follow all the certificates from start to finish on the textile you want. And who can really do all that?

Man, it is confusing huh?

[BamBootyBaby]

There are 2 environmental things to evaluate when looking at ecologically friendly fibers. Cultivation, fiber separation, and yarn creation.

1) Cultivation. This is in most opinions the most significant. Bamboo, Rayon are the lightest load as they are forestry based with extremely light environmental loads - no pesticides, herbicides or irrigation. Way behind are cultivated vegetable crops like cotton with high pesticide, fertilizer and water loads, organic cotton which uses immense tracts of land and water resources, and hemp which is usually grown on marginal but ecologically significant lands claimed from natural habitats.

2) Fiber Separation/Preparation. All natural fibers need to be separated from the plant with mechanical and or chemical processes. Cotton is the cleanest using simple mechanical ginning and combing with no waste product. Bamboo is next, it is easily separated using simple closed circuit viscosing process with no waste product. Then Rayon which needs more chemical processing due to the woodiness of the source fiber and generates some waste. Last is hemp, linen and ramie which use environmentally toxic ditch rhetting, a major water course polluter.

In the end, the most friendly and sustainable is bamboo. It has the lightest cultivation load and a simple non-toxic separation process. It's followed closely by viscose. Next is cotton/organic cotton which has a heavier environmental footprint, but simple separation. Last is hemp/linen which have marginal environmental footprints in cultivation and heavy environmental loading in separation.

[BamBootyBaby]

here are the stats on the manufacturers site that I use mostly as a bamboo supplier...so I will try to keep using them or CoveredCaboose stuff
Content: 80% bamboo, 20% cotton
CPSIA Data (08/2008) pH 5.6
Formaldehyde 0.0ppm
PCP & TeCP 0.0ppm
Phenols 0.0ppm
AZO Colorants 0.0ppm
Lead 0.0ppm
Shrink: <5% in either direction
Made In: Canada.
OekoTex Product Class I Certification. is a stringent test for the presence of harmful substances. Products are tested for all known harmful substances, both regulated and unregulated, that accumulate in all stages of fabric production from cultivation to finishing. Achieving this level of certification assures consumers the textiles are suitable for use in all products designed for babies and children.

[Sytera]

So if we go to the Oeko-Tek 100 site and search the company that manufactured our "bamboo", how do we get a copy of the certificate?

[paper_girl_76]

glad I never jumped into the bamboo thing...prefer to stick with cotton

[coveredcaboose]

Originally Posted by Sytera So if we go to the Oeko-Tek 100 site and search the company that manufactured our "bamboo", how do we get a copy of the certificate?

You would have to get it from your supplier

[BamBootyBaby]

cotton is actually not any better, crops like cotton with high pesticide, fertilizer and water loads, organic cotton which uses immense tracts of land and water resources, and leave a heavy environmental footprint.