Linen is chic and soft. It holds up well over time and is biodegradable. In short, linen is a fabric that has almost everything going for it.
This fibre comes from a plant known for its numerous advantages. In fact, flax has a resistant seed that requires little fertilization and that's able to grow in poor soil. This plant needs very little irrigation—its production requires 15 times less water than the production of cotton.1 From the seeds to the stem to the fibres, all parts of this plant can be reused.
Flax also has a rather impressive carbon dioxide retention potential (3.7 tons per hectare!),2 which greatly reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
Growers, scutchers, spinners, weavers, knitters, finishers, traders—the cultivation and transformation of flax into linen requires a sizable skilled workforce that's often local and ensures the economic prosperity of many rural areas.
To quote a report done by the European Commission in May of 2008, "Flax cultivation has positive effects on ecosystem diversity and offers a welcome environmental pause for soil quality, biodiversity, and landscapes."
Organic Linen
Organic linen is grown according to agricultural norms that prohibit genetically modified seeds and minimize the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Consequently, organic farming helps to protect the planet and the health of people by reducing their exposure to toxic chemical products that can find their way into the air, water, and food chain.
Avoiding the process of bleaching fibres by opting for natural shades (ecru, grey, and beige) helps to ensure that a garment is even more eco-friendly.
All the organic linen used in our products was grown according to strict environmental and agricultural standards and certified by a recognized independent organization.
Sources:
1 HIGG MSI sources comparing conventional linen to conventional cotton. These results were calculated with the help of the Higg Materials Sustainability Index (Higg MSI) developed by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC). The Higg MSI analyzes the impact of materials over their entire life cycle (up until the materials are ready to be assembled into a product). The Higg MSI scores or the calculations of percentages provided here represent only one production step within the scope of the Higg MSI (for example, fibres or raw materials). They do not provide an overall view of the impacts involved in the production of materials. The SAC does not verify the results of users' custom materials.
2https://www.mastersoflinen.com/fre/lin/3-ecosysteme-lin
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