Q: Where can I find a cool pair of eco jeans?
A: Finding just the right jeans to flatter your butt and slim down your planetary footprint can be as challenging as learning to love acid wash again. But it doesn’t have to be, if you know where to look.
The problem with almost all the denim on the market is that it’s made with pesticide-heavy cotton (one of the most insecticide-intense crops on the planet), which is then doused with polluting dyes, bleaching agents, enzymes, chemical softeners, even dodgy stain resisters and UV protectors.
And the more “distressed” the look, the more chems jeans were treated with. Many of those pollutants are seriously contaminating waterways in denim districts like Tehuacán, Mexico, turning local creeks blue and ravaging irrigated crops.
Sandblasting is one of the very worst processes for workers’ health, triggering silicosis. H&M, Gucci and Levi’s surprised everyone when they announced plans to eliminate sandblasting from their denim lines by 2011. After heavy campaigning against them, Gucci, Versace and just last month Armani followed suit.
Since saving the world came into fashion again a few years back, lots of brands have teased us with organic jean offerings but unfortunately pulled back during the recession (brands like Seven, Mavi, J Brand). The biggest backslider is probably Levi’s. The iconic brand came out with a green line in 2006 but cancelled its organic selection last year. It seems the company’s making the switch to cheaper “Better Cotton.”
But what is this Better Cotton? Basically, farmers must commit to minimizing chemical pesticide and herbicide use while using water wisely and maintaining soil fertility. Better Cotton workers have the right to unionize, and receive the legal minimum wage in whatever country they’re in, with no forced overtime. It’s not organic, fair-trade cotton by any stretch, but it is more conscientious than regular cotton.
Fear not, though – there’s now a slew of sexy certified-organic cotton jeans kickin’ about. One of my fave green jean lines is offered by Second. Yes, the kings of yoga jeans have an eco line and, just like their bendy denim, it’s made in Canada (Montreal, actually). Second offers about half a dozen organic styles, all for $120. These are processed using 50 per cent less water and are treated with non-toxic, chemical-free dyes (secondclothing.com).
Another super-stylish Canadian-headquartered company is Good Society. This internationally acclaimed brand is hell-bent on making stylish, feel-good jeans out of 98 per cent organic cotton. Their mill actually teaches Indian farmers how to go organic. Natural indigo dyes are used, and the jeans are sewn under fair labour conditions in India. A portion of proceeds goes toward children’s and women’s orgs there. A pair costs about $110 (goodsociety.org).
Loomstate has been making fashion-forward organic denim since 2004, first in the U.S. but now in factories around the world, though the company claims to have high labour standards. It offers more men’s styles than most brands, but these go for about $160 and up (loomstate.org).
Toronto’s own Thieves is selling all Sonja den Elzen’s killer trend-setting denim for men and women right now for half off (thieves.ca).
If you’re wondering what ever happened to basic blues with minimal fashion intervention, don’t panic. Patagonia makes some styles out of certified organic cotton (patagonia.com/ca). Rawganique out of Victoria offers a half-dozen easy-going cuts made of European-grown hemp and organic cotton for under $100 (rawganique.com).
By now I shouldn’t have to tell you, but the greenest jeans come from second-hand shops. Online ones, too. Yep, you can hop on sites like Craigslist.ca, punch in your size and up pops a top-notch collection of preloved designer styles. eBay.ca has even more organic offerings. Just skip the dealers peddling new stuff and walk away with the greenest jeans in town – for a steal.
Got a question?
Send your green queries to ecoholic@nowtoronto.com
