his Q&A blog is open for all to participate. Feel free to ask your own questions and answer questions posted by others. I know all of you have a wealth of information and experience on healthy living and you are welcome to share it here. 
Textiles
What is an Organic Mattress?
Last week, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) and the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) issued a joint Fact Sheet regarding the labeling of organic mattresses.
In May 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program (NOP) issued a Policy Memorandum that changed how mattresses that incorporate organic fibers can be labeled.
Basically, the rule is that "mattresses must be certified to either the USDA organic regulations or the Global Organic Textile Standard, or they may not be labeled as 'organic.' "
What this means in practice is that a mattress must meet one or the other of these requirements:
1) the GOTS certification for "organic mattress" which covers the entire mattress, including all materials used and processing
OR
2) the USDA National Organic Program standards for the raw agricultural products (cotton and wool) used in the making of the mattress.
It's important to distinguish between a GOTS-certified organic mattress and one that contains organic materials.
A GOTS-certified organic mattress includes organic certification of every step of making the mattress containing organic fiber. This includes spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing and manufacturing, plus an array of environmental and social provision for post-farm to retail shelf management. Included, for example, are a ban on use of child labor, genetic enegineering, heavy metals, and hazardous chemicals. "GOTS certification requires that all processing stages through manufacturing of the finished product take place in GOTS-certified facilities, and all B2B traders involved in the supply chain of GOTS-certified products must be certified to GOTS themselves. Only if these certification requirements are met may a GOTS-certified entity apply the GOTS label (including the GOTS seal) to a final product and claim in promotional materials that their products are GOTS-certified."
A GOTS-certified organic mattress does contain organic materials and probably even contains USDA certified organic cotton. However, The USDA has no certification for organic mattresses as a product. The USDA has endorsed GOTS to do this certifiction. And, if a mattress has a GOTS certification, it cannot use the USDA certification and logo even if it contains USDA certified organic cotton. The certification is GOTS or USDA, but not both.
So, if a mattress is labeled "organic mattress" it MUST also carry a GOTS certification.
Other mattresses may state "fabric (or filling) contains USDA certified organic cotton" or "fabric (or filling) contains USDA certified organic wool" but they cannot be labeled "organic mattress." "Made with..." is only permitted for organic products where the organic content is 70-95 percent.
To the best of my knowledge, the only GOTS-certified mattresses currently sold in the USA are Naturepedic, Organic Mattresses Inc, and SavvyRest though there are many others that use organic materials.
For more information, read the full Fact Sheet.
More sites I found.
Hi, Debra. I found some sites that have vegan ties, body oils, body care and sunscreens that are USDA certified, fragrance free soaps, a natural and organic marketplace, and organic cotton watches.
http://www.jaanj.com/ - vegan ties
http://www.badgerbalm.com/ - USDA certified body oils, body care and sunscreens
http://www.etsy.com/shop/baltimoresoaps - fragrance free soaps
http://www.abesmarket.com/ - one stop natural and organic online marketplace
http://sproutwatches.com/ - watches that are mercury free
http://www.sproutwatches.com/product_center.asp?dept_id=100001&sub_dept=100003 - organic cotton watches for men
http://www.sproutwatches.com/product_center.asp?dept_id=100000&sub_dept=100003 - organic cotton watches for women
Great! Thanks! :-)
The vegan ties are mostly made from plastic microfibers, however, there are some cotton ties under "Skinny Vegan Ties."
Organic Leather Belts
Hi, Debra. I found a website for belts, bags, wallets and sandals. For the men and women, there are organic belts made up of certified USDA Organic Angus beef cattle, vegetable extracts, tree bark, and bees wax. Also made in the USA.
http://www.thomasbates.com/pc/Men-s-Leather-Belts-c100.htm
http://www.thomasbates.com/pc/Highwood-Organic-Leather-Women-s-Belt-67p153.htm
Great find! Thanks!
Polyurethane coating in backpacks
I purchased a backpack made from nylon which has a polyurethane coating on the inside. It has a sticky feel to it and quite a strong odor. I have confirmed with the bag manufacturer that the coating is indeed PU and is used for waterproofing purposes. Would the PU coating used in this instance be toxic? Thanks, Chris
I personally don't use any synthetic materials that have strong odors.
I suggest putting the backpack out in the sun for a week and see how it smells then.
100% organic wool
Hi, Debra! I love the informative information that you give out to help us. I found a site that has 100% organic wool hats, lamb, beef, sweaters, hats, mittens, blankets, yarn, rugs, and fleeces and is certified USDA organic. Also inexpensive.
http://www.lambandwool.com/
Hope this can help someone that is looking for winter gear.
Looks great! Thank you.
"Band Aid" for Conventional Mattress Until We Can Afford Organic?
Hello Debra! I love your blog! We recently purchased an S-brand mattress (with a memory foam pillow top) from a local store that doesn't offer any organic alternatives. It stunk, and I started researching, and found all the terrible info on traditional beds (wish I had started this research before we purchased!) Nevertheless, we cannot afford to replace this bed with an organic one at this point, and so I am trying to find ways to reduce our exposure to the VOCs. We co-sleep with our 1 year old, so I'm really concerned about this now.
Do you think putting a 3" natural latex/wool topper would provide a bit of a buffer for us from the VOCs? I realize they're still emanating from the mattress, but at least our noses/skin would not be right on top of it.
At least we got a good price on this heap of VOCs. I won't feel bad replacing it in a few years!
Thanks!
An organic topper will NOT provide much protection from the chemicals outgassing from the mattress.
One thing you can do is wrap your mattress with foil insulation (one brand is Reflectix--sold at home improvement stores). It is a layer of foil fused to two layers of polyethylene plastic. The polyethylene is nontoxic and the aluminum foil witll block the fumes. Wrap the mattress and tape to close with aluminum foil tape, which is sold where you buy the Reflectix.
THEN put the topper on and you'll be pretty safe.
Knitting yarns
Hi Debra!
I am planning to knit some presents for christmas, and I would appreciate your opinion about these:
o-wool.com/
As a Knitter, I guess I am supposed to understand the process they us, but...
THANKS!
Misuse of Product Certifications
This week I received a press release regarding one mattress company's misuse of the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certification.
In the release, GOTS noted that the company named was making false claims of GOTS certification prior to actually gaining certification.
Just wanted to pass this along. While most companies are ethical, circumstances such as this make it prudent for consumers to verify that products that claim certification are actually certified by the certifying organization.
You can do this by contacting the certifying organization or checking the certifying organization website, or by asking the manufacturer for a copy of the certification.
My opinion is that all websites selling certified products should include a copy of the certification on the website.
Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) Disavows Greenbuds’ Use of GOTS Label for Baby Mattress and Bedding Products
Washington, DC(October 12, 2011) – The International Working Group on Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) today announced it has issued a decision banning New York City, NY-based children’s bed and bedding manufacturer Greenbuds LLC from becoming certified to GOTS for two years.
The GOTS International Working Group (GOTS IWG) first became aware in June 2010 that the company was making claims of GOTS certification prior to actually gaining certification. The IWG and Swiss-based third party independent inspector IMO (Institute for Marketecology) both told Greenbuds to cease making any claims of certification until final approval and to remove all references to GOTS certification. While Greenbuds did remove some references to meeting GOTS from its online postings, it has continued to reference GOTS certifications in other settings such as on marketing materials and advertisements and at trade shows in 2011.
“Greenbuds has not shown the trustworthiness and reliability which GOTS must expect from its licensees in order to protect its reputed standard’s integrity,” said Herbert Ladwig, Coordinator of the International Working Group on Global Textile Standard.
As a result of making false claims, the GOTS IWG has instructed IMO to discontinue the certification procedure (already temporarily halted) and not issue a GOTS certificate to Greenbuds CEO Miriam Mandel or any company she heads up. In addition, the organization has instructed all 14 GOTS-accredited certifiers worldwide to not commence any certification procedure with Ms. Mandel or any company headed by her for the next two years.
Key GOTS provisions include a ban on the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), highly hazardous chemicals such as azo dyes and formaldehyde, and child labor, while requiring living wages and strict waste water treatment practices. At least 95 percent of the fibers must be certified organic for label grade ‘organic’ and 70 percent for label grade ‘made with organic.’ GOTS IWG was established in 2002 with its standard announced in 2006.
Information about the Global Organic Textile Standard, including a trailer for the film The Global Organic Textile Standard – Ecology and Social Responsibility,can be found at www.global-standard.org.
The GOTS IWG is made up of the Organic Trade Association (US), Japan Organic Cotton Association, International Association Natural Textile Industry (Germany), and the Soil Association (UK). In late 2010, the IWG appointed regional representatives worldwide to drive an increase in the awareness of and certification to GOTS.
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Toxic Chemicals Found in Brand Name Clothes
A new report from Greenpeace called “Dirty Laundry 2″ reveals brands such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Ambercrombie & Fitch post postive for detergents that contain harmful nonylphenol ethoxylates. These form nonylphenol, which disrupts hormone functions and mimics female hormones.
Read more at:
Health Freedom Alliance: Toxins Found in Brand-Name Clothes (article)
Dirty Laundry 2: Hung Out to Dry (the original Greenpeace report)
Winter Clothes
Hi Debra!
My questions today is about winter clothes. I have been trying to find post about polyester clothes, but I only found one about pillows. So I apologize if I am asking something that you already answer. But since most winter jackets are made with polyester fleece, and most coats are lined with it, ans now we see a lot of recycle polyester, I would like to know how toxic it is to wear it.
I have recently found this store, http://us.hessnatur.com/. I would like to know your opinion. The prices are a bit high. Some of the clothes are not washable, and some say they used synthetic dyes. I was looking specially at the organic cotton fleece, as an alternative to polyester fleece.
Then I found this other site: http://www.hoodlamb.com/wintersite/index.html.
I would really appreciate your advice.
Thank you very much!
Cecilia
I like Hessnatur a lot, in fact, I am going to add them to Debra's List. They have a good philosophy, and I find that products are better when a philosophy exists and is followed, rather than finding random products that might meet a criteria sold by companies with no guiding principles.
Hoodlamb looks fine to me, too, if you want to order all the way from Europe.
