Cashmere: Sustainable Fiber or Environmental Disaster?
by Christine Lepisto, Berlin 
on 12.23.06
In theory, cashmere is the TreeHugger's ideal natural fiber. Knit or woven, it produces long-lasting garments. Quality cashmere will not pill and will keep its form for years, even generations, getting softer the more it is used. Knit garments can be hand-washed, no dry-cleaning impacts. The goats which are the source of cashmere fiber may be sheared or combed, but research suggests that combing results in better yield and less "loss" due to goats injuring each other as they huddle for warmth in the last blustery spring days. Goats which are properly kept and combed should not tweak the conscience of all but the most extreme animal protectionist (who will suggest a petroleum-based alternative for equal warmth and breathability, which has its own drawbacks). And now cashmere is so cheap, everyone can benefit from this fiber that is 8 times warmer than wool, stores without wrinkles and modulates its insulating capacity based on humidity (so you are never too warm but always warm enough). Is there a catch?
Indeed, there is a catch. Cashmere is a textbook study in the Tragedy of the Commons*, which describes the inevitable outcome of a capitalistic market economy where the resource costs are not fully calculated in the production costs. This is the case in China today, where desertification and increasingly severe dust storms arise from the overpopulation of goats, eating the grasslands bare and piercing the protective topsoils with their hooves. Goats consume over 10% of their body weight daily in roughage, eating to very close to the roots and stripping bark from seedlings, preventing the regrowth of trees. When hungry, goats will eat the fur of their neighbors, down to the skin, as pictured above. (Photo: enviroactivist)
An excellent article in the Chicago Tribune documents cashmere's true cost. Millions of goats are farmed on land suitable for only a fraction of the population. The farmers are only beginning to glimpse the reality that their cash boom-crop is so unsustainable that the balance is tipping in front of their very eyes.
The Good News
There are people researching the sustainability of cashmere production. One example is described at the SARE(Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education) site. There are small to medium size farms protecting the humane methods of raising and farming goats, such as Chianti Cashmere Goat Farm, which specifically sells only to European farmers, presumably to ensure the welfare of the animals they sell.
So what should a TreeHugger cashmere fan do?
Do you have to give up what you thought was a good choice of winter wear to stay true to your TreeHugger principles? It is, as usual, not an easy question to answer. As cashmere has the potential to be a good renewable resource when properly managed, the right answer is two-fold. First, look for the right cashmere product, some tips are given below. Second, realize that you cannot change the behavior of Chinese (or other) farmers. But you can learn from the tragedy of the commons and work as a TreeHugger to make the right choices. Ask yourself: where am I using resources in the commons at an unsustainable level? And then use the many tips in TreeHugger and elsewhere to control your own consumption. If you are in a good position, push for the implementation of controls, ideally certifications of preferred farming methods which can make visible to the consumers the source and sustainability of the cashmere they buy.
Tips for buying cashmere
Buy cashmere which will last: the best way to reduce overfarming is to reduce demand by choosing products with good lifespans. How do you know which sweater is high quality?
Don't pick the softest sweater. The manufacturer has certainly used a looser knit to minimize the raw material input and the softness of the fiber at purchase is achieved by using yarn that has a high percent of shorter fibers on the surface. These fibers will "pill" (form small balls on the surface), resulting in a shorter sweater life and less pleasure in the joyously plush fabric that will evolve from the higher-quality garment after a period of wear.
Pick a two-ply or four-ply wool. Single ply yarn is cheaper, but it cannot produce a sweater you want to last a decade. Ply is the term used to describe how many single "threads" of fiber are twisted together to create the final string of yarn from which the garment is made. The twisting of several threads together strengthens the yarn, improving durability.
Does buying a more expensive sweater guarantee the goats were treated humanely? Obviously, industrial farming techniques can reduce raw material costs and may be a hidden cost in a cheap garment. However, there is really no way the consumer can know this because even the high-end fashion suppliers will source wool as available. There is no system yet widely available for labelling to indicate cashmere raised under preferable ecological conditions and animal husbandry techniques.
* If you have not yet read the classic paper by Garrett Hardin, go to Tragedy of the Commons.
Via: Inspired by Chicago Tribune
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You might wanna close that <b> tag...
Also, if these goats need so much roughage, why not feed them silage from food crops like rice, wheat, corn or soybeans?
"Does buying a more expensive sweater guarantee the goats were treated humanely? ... However, there is really no way the consumer can know this because even the high-end fashion suppliers will source wool as available."
And also some of the premier brands need to keep their price high regardless of the cost of the raw materials.
I remember reading a story in the SF Chronicle about the trend of very expensive jeans, and one designer said that they sold far more of a certain style when it was priced at $250 than when priced at $100, as the price tag broadcast "exclusivity."
Or think about Alpaca! Soft, Warm, and there is a very sustainable growth of alpaca wool on marginal land that can not be used for other types of grazing or farming.
I enjoy the slightly nice pot shot of "animal protectionist" (so dubbed hardcore). While it's true that petroleum has to go into such non-animal alternatives, petroleum has to go into the animal alternative as well (including the large factories where the animals are sheared and the large distances they have to travel in order to have their hair taken off of them). Unless you are shearing the things yourself (which some people, in fact, DO do) theres little reason to believe that cashmere is anymore sutainable than the plastic alternatives.
Reading this article and the comment posts left me with a desire to say more than I currently have time more. Will make some quick comments on a few points. I live in the countryside in central Spain in a hilly, forested area that was once used mostly for wine grape, olive and almond cultivation - and some sheep herding. The farming has almost completely disappeared and the land is slowly becoming reforested with pine trees (pino pinorero type pines). However, there are still one or two sheep herders from the local town that take there sheep out through these abandoned patches of land. These sheep destroy any small young plant in their path. It is my desire to reforest to its natural state as much of the lands where I live as I can, but for me to plant trees out of my own three hectares is pointless unless the trees are already several years old because the sheep (and the pine cone pickers, wild esparragus pickers, mushroom pickers, raspberry pickers, quads, hunters and their armies of dogs, etc.) will simply trample all over them or eat them. This means I have to grow in large containers until the trees are big enough - which is ridiculous. Goats, and sheep, and other ruminants, grazing on 'marginal' lands will destroy them if there are too many and graze too often.
Second, why do these sheep farmers come herding their sheep near to where I live and have their animals graze abandoned lands rather than give them cheap food? Because cheap food still costs while grazing is free. Third, my gut instinct tells me that petroleum-based clothing will have a more negative impact than animal or plant-based clothing much more often than not. So if I had a choice and no hard info on environmental impact (and the vast majority of consumers for the vast majority of products do not become environmental detectives-scientists-economists-etc. to determine impact), I'd always go with the natural because odds are it will be more benign. Lastly, simply the best thing to do, as was mentioned in the article, it to quit buying so many products. A sweater, carefully worn and properly maintained, will last ages. Do we need to buy 20 every winter? If we simply bought and used only what we truly needed instead of thinking that living is shopping, than our product choices wouldn't matter so much because we would drastically be cutting down on resource consumption - whether for pertroleum-based clothing or natural. Buy less, that is the key solution.
The answer is simple: buy used.
DID YOU KNOW?
Cashmere is made from cashmere goats. Those with "defects" in their coats are typically killed before 2 years of age. Industry experts expect farmers to kill 50 to 80 percent of young goats whose coats do not meet standards.
Contrary to what many consumers think, "shearling" is not sheared wool; the term refers to the sheep. A shearling is a yearling sheep who has been shorn once. A shearling garment is made from a sheep or lamb shorn shortly before slaughter; the skin is tanned with the wool still on it.
Angora rabbits are strapped to a board for shearing, kicking powerfully in protest. The clippers inevitably bite into their flesh, with bloody results. Angoras have very delicate foot pads, making life on a wire cage floor excruciating and ulcerated feet a common condition. Because male angoras have only 75 to 80 percent of the wool yield of females, on many farms they are killed at birth.
Where on EARTH did you hear that about the angoras? What part of it? Any part!!
Angoras may be 'board sheared' in other countries, but considering that only the stupidest of producers wants dead or broken-backed rabbits, they are handled with reasonable consideration and care.
A good clipper-shearer will be paid well for their ability to avoid nicking the rabbit. Rarely are such injuries severe, most commonly shearing nicks are just that--small nicks that heal in a day or two, with very little blood.
US Angoras are generally either plucked or sheared with scissors; plucking is the gentle removal of wool as it is shed and causes the rabbit no discomfort whatsoever. Scissor shearing is always done with tremendous care and rarely results in injury.
Male angoras have just as nice a coat as the does do, and while they may be neutered, they are not 'killed at birth'. In fact, few managers are skilled enough to sex at that age.
The vast majority of US Angoras are raised on wire flooring, resulting in cleaner fiber and a healthier rabbit. As long as sanitation is good, there is NO problem with their feet at all.
It helps that breeders select for hardy, high-producing animals which have excellent bone structure and health.
But before you post information of this sort, please do your research.
Obviously some commenters don't quite know what they're talking about. Angora rabbits are not "strapped to a board and sheared". Rabbits are very tractable animals which can quickly become used to odd noises and odd occurences. Having seen angora breeders go about shearing their animals, I was at first astounded and then amused by the sight of a ball of fluff sitting on the table calmly eating sweet feed while its wool was sheared off.
Angora breeders don't shear down to the skin on their rabbits for the most part, so there is no "bloody" mess or scars or scabs to be left on their animals. I mean, really, what would be the point? Cleaning the fresh wool to remove the bloodstains would add an entirely uneccessary and quite probably expensive cost to the entire procedure. It's an entirely humane experience with no trauma or pain to the animal.
Hi!
We are Angora rabbit breeders and we have many friends that are Angora breeders Our common bond is the love of the Angora rabbit and the angora wool.
Our rabbits are not mistreated. Frankly, they are spoiled by all the fussing and attention they get. We comb them and save the wool. When they molt they get gently plucked. When summer comes, we shear the wool to prevent rabbits from overheating.
So where ever you found that info about mistreated Angora rabbits does not apply to rabbits owned by Angora breeders in the USA.
Have a good day!
Franco & Tracy Rios
http://www.angoras.net
Hi!
We are Angora rabbit breeders and we have many friends that are Angora breeders Our common bond is the love of the Angora rabbit and the angora wool.
Our rabbits are not mistreated. Frankly, they are spoiled by all the fussing and attention they get. We comb them and save the wool. When they molt they get gently plucked. When summer comes, we shear the wool to prevent rabbits from overheating.
So where ever you found that info about mistreated Angora rabbits does not apply to rabbits owned by Angora breeders in the USA.
Have a good day!
Franco & Tracy Rios
http://www.angoras.net
"Angora rabbits are strapped to a board for shearing, kicking powerfully in protest. The clippers inevitably bite into their flesh, with bloody results. Angoras have very delicate foot pads, making life on a wire cage floor excruciating and ulcerated feet a common condition. Because male angoras have only 75 to 80 percent of the wool yield of females, on many farms they are killed at birth."
I'm not really sure where you got your information from, but I suggest doing actual research before spreading such inaccuracies.
Firstly, Angora Rabbits are NOT strapped down to a board or anything else. One could not harvest quality wool from a strapped down animal that was "kicking powerfully in protest" and thus such a method would be pointless for someone harvesting the wool in the first place.
Secondly, Angora Rabbits are usually NOT sheared for their wool---it results in poor quality wool. The MOST POPULAR and used methods of wool gathering from Angora Rabbits is handplucking, whereupon the wool is plucked from the rabbits' fur during it's natural molt/shedding month (the wool practically falls out at this time--it's the equivalent to a Siberian Husky 'blowing its coat') and combing. NEITHER of those methods harm the rabbit and result in a higher quality wool---therefore making it the more desireable methods to use.
Thirdly, Angora Rabbits have tremendous padding on their feet, thanks to the fact that they are a wooled breed. They are no more prone to 'sore hocks' (ie: ulcerations/sores on the feet) than any other breed when kept on ideally sized wire. Infact, housing Angora Rabbits on a wire-bottom floor is more sanitary than any other method and therefore keeps them healthier.
Fourthly, care to provide the reference for your statistic regarding male Angoras yielding less wool than females? Funny, I can't seem to find ANY differences in the genders, as far as wool production is concerned. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, however, and -assume- you're correct. How exactly are male Angora Rabbits killed at birth when even the -most experienced- rabbit breeder cannot determine gender until at least 2-3 weeks of age---and even then it's an uncertain call? The fact of the matter is that male Angora Rabbits 'blow their coats' just as often as female Angora . The fact that breeders have less males than females rings true for ANY breed---1 male can service multiple does and so a lot of males is NOT needed for a breeding program. Also, males can and do spray urine and will rub themselves in it---which soils the wool, so keeping males for the purpose of wool production would be a stupid maneuver---so males are either breeders, or pets, usually.
Please educate yourself before spreading false information about something you clearly have no experience with. And for the record, NO, I do not have Angora Rabbits, nor have I ever, but I was in 4-H for many years and have helped numerous purebred rabbit clubs in my area where Angora Rabbits (and their breeders, all of whom spun the gorgeous wool), were present.
Ref: http://www.tanagersongfarm.com/fiber_arts/spinning_angora.html
http://www.joyofhandspinning.com/angora.shtml
http://www.homestead.org/LivestockDirectory/VictoriaVargas/AngoraRabbits.htm
http://www.hjsstudio.com/angora.html
Feel free to do a google search on 'harvesting angora rabbit wool' for more websites stating what I have about Angora Rabbits and their wool harvesting/care/ect.
Yes, agree with the other comments about angoras. They've been bred since the 17th century to be docile. They may be secured in some fashion for shearing, but this is only so the skin isn't wrinkled and cut. I don't have to secure mine at all for haircuts. They just sit there and purr. It's painless. And if a rabbit was nicked in a factory farm, it'd probably get infected and die. Not much profit there. And they certainly aren't going to pay a vet to suture up the laceration. Angoras have large blood vessels near the surface of their skin - so that they can cool more easily under the thick dense coat - it would be really stupid for anyone wanting supreme clean fiber to treat them so roughly that they are cut in any way. I don't agree with keeping angoras in tiny cages for life just to get their wool, but I would not post comments unless you've visited an angora farm yourself or owned one. In New Zealand they do put them in foot straps, but the haircut goes so much faster. If a rabbit were to kick and fight, the'dy easily break their spines - if they did that, they'd die - again a stupid idea. And lastly, rabbits are animals of prey- they can literally be scared to death - have heart failure if they are mistreated or panicked. So again, not that I believe in keeping large numbers of rabbits confined- but it'd not be in the best interest of a farmer, to treat these tender animals roughly. Lastly, I'd like to agree with the comments someone above mentioned about buying LESS. That would solve a ton of problems we have. Fashion, I see as to blame. Magazines, tv and celebrities that brainwash kids from toddlers on to change their style from season to season and to be trendy. Although I guess you can go even further and ask what's behind fashion and marketing itself? Quite possibly human nature - as we're all implementing these ridiculous practices ourselves and ruining the planet in return. The way I see it -- we should buy warm natural fiber clothing - but buy locally - educate yourself where that wool comes from. Or buy wool yourself locally and pay some nice lady to knit you a sweater. I think Americans have their heads in the sand sometimes and don't ask enough about where the things we buy and use daily come from....and if you can't find out, change your habits! or learn how to make your own stuff. It's really not that hard. Also, have to comment in retort to someone else talking about plucking - giants and germans are never to be plucked. This would cause awful pain. You have to shear them religiously every 3 months.
Hi
Not written on here before, but I'm writting an article on desertification in inner mongolia for a universtity project and so I've been doing a bit of research into this for college. iIcame across this company in the UK who claim theircashmere is 100% sustainable : is this possible?
http://www.purecollectioncashmere.com/sustainable_cashmere.shtml