Most Britons underestimate the full environmental impact of cotton, thinking it takes only 314 litres of water to make a cotton T-shirt – which is only 12% of the true figure of 2,700 litres, according to a new report out today.

Yet buying a certified organic cotton T-shirt rather than an ordinary one would save a staggering 2,457 litres of water – enough for one person to drink eight glasses of water a day for three and a half years.

Consumers are being urged to save water in the supply chain by buying organic cotton T-shirts in a new study from the Soil Association – the trade body that licenses organic products and promotes organic farming, as well as the environmental charity Hubbub.

Two in five Britons also said that while they care about the environment, it has not occurred to them that the manufacture of their clothing might have a negative impact on the planet, according to the new research.

Within the fashion industry, more than half of garments sold in the UK are made from cotton, meaning that switching conventional cotton to more sustainable cotton alternatives continues to present one of the biggest opportunities for retailers to reduce their environmental impact.

Cotton is a notoriously thirsty crop as detailed in the report. Growing cotton accounts for 69% of the water footprint of textile fibre production; just one kilogram of cotton takes as much as 10,000-20,000 litres of water to produce.

Nomads clothing AW19 … pioneers in sustainability, producing organic cotton clothes.

The World Economic Forum has identified water scarcity as one of the top 10 global risks to society over the next 10 years, yet the bulk of cotton is grown in countries that are already facing severe water stress.

However, growing cotton organically uses significantly less (up to 91%) water than conventional cotton, the report says. In addition, conventional cotton uses approximately 16% of the world’s insecticides and 7% of pesticides.

Sales of Soil Association certified textiles grew by 18% in the UK in 2018, highlighting growth in the market that is now worth £41.3m. In the UK, brands such as Komodo, Frugi, Greenfibres, Nomads, People Tree, and Seasalt have been pioneers in sustainability, producing organic cotton clothes that are fully certified throughout production and processing. Superdry is planning to go 100% organic by 2040.

To highlight the issue, Hubbub and the Soil Association will this week unveil a 3.5-metre installation at the Westfield shopping centre in west London to show shoppers how much water organic cotton saves versus non-organic cotton.



Sarah Divall from Hubbub said: “The call for a more sustainable fashion industry has never been louder, and encouraging people to make easy switches when they do buy something new, such as to organic cotton, can make a real difference. Hubbub is committed to making the fashion industry better for the planet and making it easier for shoppers to make the right choices.”