Organic yarn means that the fiber the yarn is made from was produced
without the use of man-made chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides or
chemical fertilizer.
When the fiber comes from an animal, the animal must be fed organic feed and raised under organic standards.
Growing cotton accounts for as much as 16 percent
of global pesticide use. Of course all of that does not go to make
yarn--it's used for T-shirts, sheets, bedding and countless other
products.
Pesticide use is harmful to both the people who have to live and
work around pesticides and the planet when pesticide runs off from where
it was
intended and contaminates nearby water.
Organic cotton is
grown without the use of chemical pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers
(there are natural ingredients that can be used for these purposes, such
as pyrethrin, which comes from chrysanthemums).
Organic cotton yarn is a big trend in knitting right now. As people are
looking for more natural products to pit in and use on their bodies,
organic cotton yarn fills a big niche in the knitting world.
