Why we prioritise reducing Virgin Materials.

We’re living with restricted resources on natural materials and cotton is one of the most valuable, proliferous crops we grow outside of food. 27 million tons of cotton are produced a year that’s the same as 27 t-shirts for everyone on Earth per year! The process of growing cotton is extremely water-intensive with cotton production responsible for the drying of the Aral Sea, using an extensive amount of virgin cotton is damaging to eco-systems worldwide.  Therefore it’s more important than ever that we reduce our reliance on virgin cotton fibres.

Information provided by The World Counts.

Our cotton fibre is made from 50% Texloop RCOT™Primo Recycled Cotton, blended with organic cotton.  Unfortunately due to the nature of the recycling process, the fibres still need to be blended with a virgin fibre to create a stable material.

So, we use organic cotton,  grown with no chemical pesticides or insecticides. Creating a smooth, premium fibre from what otherwise would be cotton waste.  Using this blend we not only reduce our need for virgin cotton, but when compared to conventional cotton our recycled cotton uses 72% less energy, 84% less water and 51% less CO2 per lb of fibre. We've not compromised on quality either our finished fabric has the most incredible softness for your everyday comfort.

How we’re seeking to solve the problem with plastic in elastics.

We’re all aware of the problem with fossil fuels, but did you know that fossil fuels are used to make some of our most common synthetic (man-made) fabrics such as polyester and elastics, derived from fossil fuels like petroleum and crude oil.

The use of these fibres have become increasingly popular in recent times, de to their stretch properties providing support and comfort. Although this is desirable in tight fitting clothing like underwear, the use of these materials is contributing to our environmental crisis. Polyester makes up 80% of all synthetic fibres produced in 2021 due to its popularity as a cheap, strong crease-resistant fabric, but the primary raw material of which is crude oil. The commercial production of conventional polyester also requires ethylene and ethylene glycol, as well as para-xylene, which is used to produce terephthalic acid (TPA).  The resulting PET compound is plastic, the same as used in packaging and disposable plastic items.

Information provided by Textile Exchange

This problem is prevalent in mass-market underwear, check your labels. Does your organic cotton underwear contain, polyester, nylon, elastane or spandex? Cotton underwear needs this stretch component to ensure that it's durable, doesn't lose shape and can withstand multiple wash cycles.

We want to find alternative sources to this problem fibre and are working with a cradle-to-cradle gold standard biodegradable elastane, Roica V550, to ensure no part of our underwear fabric stays around for decades to come. The Cradle-to-Cradle certified Gold for Material Health (certificate) means Roica V550 does not emit carcinogens, mutagens, or reproductive toxicants during consumer use and is Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Banned List compliant.

We’ve also replaced the conventional elastic waistband on our boxers and high-waisted briefs with a blend of natural rubber and organic cotton, maintaining all-day comfort with natural materials. We are working to find a solution for the smaller elastics on our women’s essential brief and cheeky fit.

We won’t compromise on colour.

One of the most damaging parts of creating fabrics and fibres in the dyestuff is with 90% of our clothes are dyed synthetically, requiring vast amounts of water and hazardous chemicals in production. Therefore we choose to use only manufacturers that comply with the highest sustainable dying production standards, Bluesign and OEKO-TEX 9® Standard 100. 

Information Provided by Good on You

The dyeing and finishing phase of textile fibres can require as much as 200 tonnes of water for every tonne of textiles produced, according to Asim K. Roy Choudhury (retired professor and HOD Textile)Our fabric mill Tintex is one of the industry leaders in water management. With their cutting-edge machinery, they boast one of the lowest net liquor ratios (litres of water used to treat 1 kg of fabric) of the industry, reducing the impact of the water usage in material knitting and dying as well as having a sustainable water management system.

Where do we want to be?

We’re always searching for natural dye solutions that will withstand the frequent wear and washing of underwear products without becoming discoloured or fading too fast.

Selecting each component with the end in mind.

We carefully select all materials and components to ensure each complete garment has a viable end-of-life solution.  With the aim where possible of creating mono materials items of clothing, we enable each item to be easily recycled when it’s no longer wanted anymore. Each fibre, trim and thread are selected to meet our circular design criteria for the purpose of the garment in its used lifespan, but also for the right end-of-life route.

By selecting all our materials to be able to be recycled or biodegraded,  using non-toxic inks and dyes stuff, we are reducing the environmental impact of our clothing not only in production but when it’s no longer needed by you (our customers).