University of Vaasa - Vaasan yliopisto

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friendly ranges setting a trend for ‘eco-look’ garments. In 1994 when this short-lived
trend died out, it brought a crisis in the organic cotton market, particularly in the US;
sales fell dramatically, resulting in a 50% fall in the production of organic cotton
crops (Ton 2002). Even though the awareness of organic methods was growing, it
was still limited to environmentally aware consumers.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s there was a resurgence of interest in sustainable
methods, accompanied by a huge expansion in the range, design and quality of
organic clothes and the organic infrastructure in general (Ton 2002). This was
paralleled by an increasing awareness of sustainability issues among the general
public, media and government bodies, and a reversal in the downward trend of
organic cotton sales
Methodology
Multiple data sources were used for this study. Interviewees were selected for their
knowledge of the different stages of an organic cotton value chain (see Table 1).
Most interviews were in person although some were conducted over the phone or via
email questionnaire. Data also came from visits to sites where cotton was produced,
spun, knitted, dyed or sewn into the final garment. In order to have comparable
results, a single jersey cotton T-shirt with twenties count (170 grams per square
metre) was selected as the base garment.