Which Organic Clothes are Made in America?

This is a question we get often so I’d like to clarify the answer.  We have many lines with tags that say “Made in the USA” on them.  But legally speaking, that only means that the final garment was sewn in the USA.  There are essentially 3 steps to making a piece of clothing (organic or otherwise).

  1. The base material (cotton, hemp, bamboo, pine tree, whatever) has to be grown somewhere.
  2. The base material has to be soaked, spun, woven or otherwise turned into fabric for cutting or yarn for knitting/crocheting.
  3. The garment has to be sewn (or knit or crocheted).

While there are always exceptions to every rule, we have found that in the vast majority of cases #1 and #2 are done in the same region.  It’s too expensive to grow cotton in one country, send the raw material to another country to make fabric and then send the fabric to a 3rd country for cutting and sewing.  Most raw material is turned into fabric or yarn local to where it is grown.  However, it is very common to produce fabric in one country and then ship the finished fabric off to another country to have it sewn.

made in the usa dress

The tag on this adorable Overall Dress on the left states Made in the USA.  But the Hemp/Tencel blended fabric is imported.  We do our very best to track down exactly where our products are imported from.  We try to list both where an item is sewn and where it’s grown along with working conditions for both.

As we mentioned in our Quick Facts, the USA does not grow enough organic cotton to meet our own eco-fashion needs.  Thus organic cotton is often imported.  Hemp has only recently been legalized to grow in the USA, so much of it is still imported.

We’re started putting a “Made in America” flag on items that are sewn in the USA. Bolstering our manufacturing capability definitely helps job our economy and job growth, even if the fabric has been imported. So as long as the item has been sewn in the USA, you’ll see that flag. Check the “Fabric & Care” section for more details on where the fabric originates. 

organic womens panties made in the USA

There are still a (very) few manufacturers who grow and sew end-to-end completely in the USA.  For example, SOS From Texas grows, spins, weaves and sews completely in the USA. For our own in-house underwear brand, Green Tree Organic, we design, pattern, cut, sew and print locally in Oregon using GOTS certified fabrics from India. We think the resulting panties, like the Hearts A’Flutter shown right, are still pretty great. (But we’re definitely biased.)

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Written By Adrienne

2 Comments on “Which Organic Clothes are Made in America?

  1. Faerie's Dance

    September 18, 2009 at 3:32

    Congratulations, Lisa! You've won the free panty.

  2. Lisa Flynn

    September 16, 2009 at 2:07

    Love your blog. Thanks for keeping us informed.

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