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Wanna start the day off green? Drying off with a green bath towel might be a good way to start -- which is why I was pretty psyched to get a nice towel set from Shirts of Bamboo as a holiday present, courtesy of my sister.
But let me begin by saying that there are green sides AND downsides to these towels. Lemme explain:
Bamboo, as many of you know, is an eco-plant. It grows quickly, doesn't require pesticides, and is highly malleable. My towels are are 70% bamboo, 30% organic cotton; if we're talking about the raw materials alone, my towels are pretty damn green.
However, processing bamboo is often not so green. The main issue, as Lee points out at Organic Clothing, is that a lot of bamboo fiber is "chemically manufactured by “cooking” the bamboo leaves and woody shoots in strong chemical solvents such as sodium hydroxide (NaOH – also known as caustic soda or lye) and carbon disulfide in a process also known as hydrolysis alkalization combined with multi-phase bleaching." Both of those chemicals are linked to health probs for the workers creating the stuff. Ick!
And that's the process that Shirts of Bamboo uses. To the company's credit, Daniel A. Jacobs from Shirts of Bamboo quickly and honestly got back to me about where the company is, greenwise:
It is unfortunate, but the Chinese companies that own the patent on the processes are slow to change their ways. We feel that the benefits in all of the other areas of bamboo clothing, starting with the growth of the bamboo itself, outweigh the environmental impact of the actual fiber production. That being said, we are continually lobbying our upstream manufacturers to switch to the Lyocel method or some other method that is more environmentally kind. As we grow as a company and have more leverage, we will continue to push harder for change.
What I gather is that Shirts of Bamboo is still quite a small company, without the power to demand changes from the manufacturer they source from. This fact, as you might've guessed, also raised concerns about fair labor standards for me....
So I investigated. Shirts of Bamboo goods that are made in China -- as my towel was -- are produced under a set of guidelines called ISO 8000. While these guidelines are better than nothing, these standards have been often critiqued because they are guidelines set by the companies and corporations that have been known to abuse sweatshop labor. "No Illusions: Against the Global Cosmetic SA8000" (doc), for example, outlines a devastating critique of the shortcomings of ISO 8000. Better standards are Fair Trade Federation membership standards or the Workers' Rights Consortium membership standards.
Is Shirts of Bamboo an ungreen company? Not at all. It's a company that clearly seems concerned about the issues, as evidenced by their blog, cheekily named SoB blog, which often tries to hash out these concerns. Jennifer Lance of ecochildsplay seems to like SoB's bamboo towelettes -- though I'm not convinced. In general, greenies like bamboo stuff unconditionally; shorsha at Naturally Speaking recommends bamboo towels, for example, no questions asked.
However, Shirts of Bamboo is also not a true blue green company. Yes, sourcing bamboo fiber that's created in an eco-friendly manner can be difficult, but even small companies like CertainTees are doing it. And yes, finding Chinese factories that are FTF or WRC members is difficult, but not impossible; many small fair trade and sweatshop free companies are doing exactly that.
The issue with many products from true blue green companies, however, is that they can be pricy. What Shirts of Bamboo offers is something in the middle: A semi-green product with an affordable price tag. I mean, an entire towel set costs just $21.99! For those who wanna go greener but can't afford the price tag of, say, Anna Sova organic cotton towels, Shirts of Bamboo towels are a damn good choice.
The towels themselves: They're light, thin, and quick-drying. If you like a lighter, basic towel that isn't too heavy, quickly wicks of moisture, and is easy to wash and dry, these Shirts of Bamboo towels are for you. If you're the type that likes to cocoon herself for hours in a big fluffy bath towel, however, you should really opt for the more expensive Anna Sova stuff.
Got a green towel recommendation? Lemme know in the comments :) At the moment, I think my
