What is bamboo?
Bamboo is an exotic plant, a reed found on several continents: Africa, America, Asia and Oceania. Its incredibly strong, light stems have made it a favourite plant for many uses for centuries: building homes, decoration, kitchen utensils, musical instruments and more.
It is a "camel plant" that grows very quickly with little water, and needs neither fertilisers nor pesticides. This makes it an eco-friendly, inexpensive raw material, increasingly popular with the textile industry, especially in ethical fashion.
The largest producer of bamboo is India, closely followed by China, which sends much of its production to the textile industry. However, there are also bamboo plantations in South-East Asia and in Africa, where it grows naturally and is starting to be sold, for example in Ethiopia and Nigeria. With its fast growth, its many uses and a yield 25 times higher than that of traditional tree plantations, it is a driver of development and of the fight against poverty in developing countries.
Why make clothes from bamboo?
Textile fibres made from bamboo are light but very strong, and also very soft to the touch, which makes them comfortable to wear. As bamboo is a rot-proof plant, bamboo fibres also have the advantage of being naturally antibacterial while being very absorbent. That is why they are widely used for technical clothing, for sport for example. More generally, this supple material with its many properties can be used to make a whole range of clothing such as trousers, underwear, T-shirts and more. This artificial material combines an organic raw material, responsible and ethical consumption in a quality product with low production costs.
From plant to artificial chemical fibres: a look at the manufacturing process
To begin with, growing bamboo is indeed eco-friendly: it is an organically grown plant, as it needs neither fertilisers nor pesticides, it restores and protects the soil, and it produces up to 35% more oxygen than traditional trees.
Bamboo fibres, however, are not a natural material: they are artificial chemical fibres. The bamboo fibres used in the textile industry, even in fair trade and ethical fashion, are obtained through a heavy chemical transformation process. Natural bamboo fibre is quite rough and brittle, which makes it uncomfortable to wear. Most "bamboo fibre" clothes are actually made from regenerated bamboo cellulose, or bamboo viscose, which is an artificial material.
The bamboo is first ground into powder so the cellulose can be extracted, then the cellulose is extruded using a chemical mix of sodium sulphate and citric acid before being turned into bamboo fibres. What makes this process highly questionable is the use of carbon disulphide to extract the bamboo cellulose and make the yarn. It is a chemical that cannot be reused or recycled, it is toxic and flammable, and it causes significant air pollution.
Finally, in most clothes, the textile fibres are a bamboo/cotton blend to make machine washing easier.
Bamboo fibres: eco-friendly cure-all or greenwashing?
Contrary to the very green image widespread in ethical fashion, bamboo, presented as an eco-friendly material, is not a natural textile: it is an artificial chemical material. Isn't that a contradiction?
To begin with, bamboo is an eco-friendly plant whose cultivation is far less harmful to the planet than cotton's, for example, and whose economic benefits are very positive for the producing countries, which are developing countries. Despite a polluting chemical process, textile factories and international standards increasingly encourage the recycling of industrial solvents, which limits their environmental impact.
However, this manufacturing process encourages the overexploitation of bamboo at the expense of ecosystems. During the viscose manufacturing process, most of the resources are lost: it takes about 1kg of bamboo to produce 400g of bamboo fibre! While a large share of bamboo production comes from small independent farms that ensure the plantations are managed sustainably, bamboo does not escape industrial exploitation and deforestation in regions where it is vital to the survival of many species, such as pandas in China or lemurs in Africa. It is also sometimes planted in ecosystems it is not native to, where it spreads at the expense of local species. Bamboo is a very invasive plant, and its planting must be controlled.
Bamboo fibres have very interesting properties and are a good alternative to less eco-friendly textiles. Growing bamboo is organic and good for the soil and the environment in general. On top of that, the economic benefits for farmers are significant. Increasingly popular, bamboo fibres are therefore presented by the textile industry as the eco-revolution in clothing.
But don't fall for it!
The chemical process used to make these artificial textile fibres can still be improved, and plantations must be managed wisely and with respect for local ecosystems so that growing bamboo keeps a positive environmental impact.
