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The global textile chain
Before cotton textiles reach our wardro-bes, they go on a long, eventful journeywhich takes them around the globe.They originate from the cultivated rawcotton and then they continue onthrough the processing and finishing of the fibre, respectively the material, tothe clothing manufacturers and fromthere, via several retailer to the wearer-’s wardrobe. Many players are involvedin the individual phases of production.The following is a rough outline of thepresent situation of cotton textiles inthe textile industry.
Trade without barriers
For many years the international textiletrade was strictly regulated by a compli-cated system of import restrictions.Industrial nations tried to protect theirown textile industry from cheap imports.In January 2005, within the frameworkof negotiations on the liberalisation of world trade, the regulation (the Multi-Fibre Agreement) ended after 21 years of existence.
China clothes the world?
During the existence of the textileagreement, the global distribution of textile production has developed in sucha way that for many poor countries inthe South it has become an importantexport industry. For example, while Chi-na was allowed a low quota, other coun-tries such as Bangladesh profited fromthe quota regulation. Now that quotaimplementation has ended, it is fearedthat developing countries will be forcedout of the competition. Their main rivalis China: low wages, high flexibility andproductivity, as well as the capability tomass production, are China’s advantagesand it is forecasted that China’s share of the global textile trade could growrapidly from 20% to 50%.
The textile chain
Besides the challenges presented by theglobal textile trade, the textile produc-tion chain from the raw product to theretail textile trade remains very complexand widely ramified. It is almost impos-sible to retrace a textile to its place of origin as supply structures in the textileand clothing industry are kept secret. Inprinciple it is possible to retrace eachproduction step. At each level of theproduction chain, power is dividedamong the various players and specificproblems can be pinpointed. Good solu-tions have been found to some pro-blems; however these solutions have notbeen put into practice widely enough orhave not been imitated. Cotton plays acentral role in the clothing and textiletrade as it is used in a large proportionof production.
Cotton cultivation
Cotton cultivation takes place in manydeveloping countries. Industrial coun-tries such as the USA, however, are alsoinvolved. Their subsidies for growersand/or export subsidies put pressure onthe world market price and obstructSouthern countries. Apart from lowworld market prices, the enormous useof pesticides in cultivation has drasticeffects on the health of farmers andfield workers and the environment. Cot-ton monoculture supplants food produc-tion. The problem of rivalry for the use of the land, health and environmentaldamage, as well as financial dependen-cy can be counteracted by the cultiva-tion of organic cotton. Organic cottonachieves a higher market price, healthand ecological damage can be preventedand financial losses reduced. A variety of crop rotations replaces the usual mono-culture of conventional cotton cultiva-tion and simultaneously ensures thatfoodstuffs are also produced.After the cultivation and harvest, thecotton is then separated. Seed kernelsand impurities are separated from thefibre hairs. The fibre is then spun into
From the Cotton Field to the Wardrobe
By Alexandra Baier, supported by Heike Frese
Pestizid Aktions-Netzwerk e.V. (PAN Germany)
Data on the Textile and Clothing Industry
Number of producing countriesAbout 160No. of official employed23.6 Mio.No. of informal employed5-10 times the number of those officially employedGender comparison80-90% women of those employed
Source: Ferenschild, Wick (2004) 
 
yarn in a spinning mill. Separation nor-mally takes place in the country of cul-tivation but the next steps, from thespinning onwards, can take placeanywhere in the world. Whether theyarn is first dyed or woven respectivelyknitted, depends on the desired qualityand the final product. The work invol-ving textile finishing is, in almost everycase, work associated with catastrophicworking conditions mainly affectingworkers’ health.
Textile finishing
Textile finishing includes among otherthings, washing, bleaching, dying, prin-ting and processing of textile fibres andfabrics. This work is often carried out inSouthern countries as there the wagesare lower and, above all, environmentalregulations hardly play a role. In thisway, costs for this type of work are keptto a minimum, to the detriment of theworkers’ health and the environment. Itis hardly possible to judge what dangersworkers face. In Germany alone, 7,000textile processing products are produ-ced, and only a small proportion of the-se have been tested to find out theireffects on health or ecology.
The Clothing Trade
Clothes production, meaning the tailo-ring and production of clothing, usuallytakes place in countries where thewages are very low. Clothing textiles aremade most time in the so-called free
Pestizid Aktions-Netzwerk e.V. (PAN Germany)
Illustration: Simple diagram of the textile chaina
1.Production of the rawproduct cotton•Harvest•Cultivation2.Separation•Mechanical separation of fibres,seeds and impurities3.Spinning•Production of yarn4a.Weaving•Production of woven fabrics4b.Knitting•Production of knitted fabric5.Finishing•Dyeing•Printing•Accoutrement6.Clothing industry•Tailoring•Sewing•Packaging7.Trading8.Usage9.Disposal
Source: PAN Germany Cotton Connection
 
productions zones e.g. Bangladesh or ElSalvador. Often unbearable workingconditions exist in these zones. For theworkers, it is mainly women whoemployed in the production process, thismeans unpaid overtime, workingwithout a break, unions are not permit-ted and should a woman become preg-nant, she risks losing her job.
Ecological and socially clean– it is possible!
Hess Natur, a German mail order com-pany for natural textiles, shows thatthings can be done differently. Workingtogether with the Clean Clothes Cam-paign, a consumer campaign whichfights for better working conditions inthe textile industry worldwide, HessNatur has developed a standardizedmonitoring system for checking on wor-king conditions. The system, which hasbeen successfully put into practice,makes it easier for outsiders to under-stand how textiles can be produced in asocially acceptable manner. At the sametime, Hess Natur envisages the possibi-lity of giving small and medium-sizedfirms new controls with regard to main-taining social standards. At the end of the pilot project at the beginning of 2005, Hess Natur became the first Ger-man company to join the Dutch FairWear Foundation. The conditions forindependent, transparent monitoring bymeans of a “Multi Stakehoder Initiative”are hereby fulfilled.Other projects also see the possibility of combining social and ecological stan-dards. The Catholic Land Youth (Katholi-sche Landjugend) has run an extremelysuccessful project since 1998. Organiccotton from Tanzania is manufactured inKenya under Fair Trade conditions. Rea-dy-made clothes, mainly t-shirts, areproduced and during the processingphase ecological conditions have beensteadily improved.For every t-shirt sold, 50 cents gotowards a social fund which is managedby the workers themselves. A Board of Directors, elected by the staff, admini-sters the money in a trust account. Thefund enables workers to take out smallcredits at good conditions for buildinghouses, paying school fees or for creditsfor starting up small family businesses.This is often the only possibility of gai-ning access to capital as banks in Kenyado not give credits to plain workers andthe 100% interest rates demanded bythe money lenders are no alternative.
Joseph Munyao, dyer from theBhupco company:
„With the money from the Eco-FairSocial fund I was able to buy asewing machine for my wife so thatshe could start up a private tailoringbusiness. We have already bought arainproof roof, two metal windowsand paid the school fees for my sonwith the income. We repaid the cre-dit we took out long ago.
Source: LamuLamu (2004) 
Transport
When one considers how many stepsthere are in the production chain, onecan see that the cotton has travelled along way from the field to our wardro-bes which places a further burden on theclimate. The following examples makethis clear, whereby the steps from fibreproduction to the finishing process arenot taken into consideration.
Pestizid Aktions-Netzwerk e.V. (PAN Germany)
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