There has been a lot of debate recently as to whether bamboo should be classed as an alternative Eco fibre or not. None supporters of bamboo say it shouldn’t be classed as Eco friendly because of the chemical process needed to convert the raw bamboo into a fibre.

Chemically manufactured bamboo fibre is a regenerated cellulose fibre similar to viscose or modal. Chemically manufactured bamboo is sometimes called bamboo viscose because of the many similarities in the way it is chemically manufactured and similarities in its feel and handle.

For us Bamboo has it’s GOOD and BAD sides: 

GOOD BAMBOO:

Botanically categorized as a grass and not a tree, bamboo just might be the world’s most sustainable resource. It is the fastest growing grass and can shoot up a yard or more a day. Bamboo reaches maturity quickly and is ready for harvesting in about 3 years. Bamboo does not require replanting after harvesting because its vast root network continually sprouts new shoots, pulling in sunlight and greenhouse gases and converting them to new green growth. And bamboo does this the natural way without the need for petroleum-guzzling tractors and poisonous pesticides and fertilizers and gallons of precious water. Bamboo also grows on degraded lands and helps stop soil erosion and cleanses polluted and discarded land designated as unfit. 

BAD Bamboo:

Bamboo the plant is wonderfully sustainable; bamboo the fabric isn’t so easy to categorise. There are two ways to process bamboo to make the plant into a fabric: mechanically or chemically. The mechanical way is by crushing the woody parts of the bamboo plant and then use natural enzymes. This is essentially the same eco-friendly manufacturing process used to produce linen fabric from flax or hemp. Bamboo fabric made from this process is sometimes called bamboo linen. Very little bamboo linen is manufactured for clothing because it is more labour intensive and costly and is quite harsh fabric when finished.

While specifics can vary, the general process for chemically manufacturing bamboo fibre is by using hydrolysis alkalisation with multi-phase bleaching technology – which is the dominate technology for producing regenerated bamboo fibre.

 SO:

We at Frank & Faith agree, not ideal but we are working on it and hope to have a more sympathetic and less chemical based process soon. We are looking at the newer manufacturing techniques using other technologies to chemically manufacture bamboo fibre that are more benign and eco-friendly. The chemical manufacturing process used to produce lyocell from wood cellulose can be modified to use bamboo cellulose. The lyocell process, also used to manufacture TENCEL®, uses N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide to dissolve the bamboo cellulose into a viscose solution.  N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide is a member of the amine oxide family and is considered a less harmful chemical.

THE GOOD NEWS:

Is that our bamboo is processed in Italy and not in China, so our mill has to follow strict procedures regarding protecting the workforce and the use and disposal of harmful chemicals and not dumping waste water into the water supply and damaging the environment. We made the decision to pay double for our bamboo fabric because we did not believe bamboo processed in China would follow the same strict EU regulatory laws as we know our factory in Italy does.

We allow our customers (both wholesale and retail) to view all side ‘of the fence’ and make their own educated decisions on what they feel is more beneficial to the environment, a wonderful crop alternative to cotton with all it’s benefits listed above or dismiss it because the majority of bamboo viscose is produced with chemical processes in China with no controls or protection for the workers or the environment?

 It is a tough one to call I agree but by being transparent and honest and changing things one small step at a time we allow everyone to make their own minds up.