t the Las Vegas Convention Center. VTOF is one of the first and few companies in the U.S. to have partner spinning mills certified to the new Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) and is getting all subsequent processing phases certified to the standard.
Middlebury, VT August 20, 2008 -- Vermont Organic Fiber Company (VTOF), the U.S.' leading manufacturer of organic wool yarns, fabrics, hand-knitting yarns, and blankets, will introduce new O-Wool (http://www.o-wool.com) suiting, herringbone, and flannel fabrics at the Sourcing@MAGIC (http://www.sourcingatmagic.com) show August 24-27, 2008, at the Las Vegas Convention Center (booth FA 23710 in the South Hall).
VTOF will also display its wide range of other O-Wool knit and woven fabrics, including blanket, interlock, jersey, melton, and pile as well as 'O-Wool by Jasco' fabrics. In addition,
samples of O-Wool fabrics will be on display at the Organic Exchange booth (E-9814) at the first-ever ECOLLECTION at MAGIC (http://www.magiconline.com/ecollection) show in the convention center's Central Hall.
O-Wool yarns and fabrics are made from certified organic Merino wool spun, knit, woven, and finished at facilities in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and South Carolina. Woolen
spinning in the U.S. is certified to the new Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) (http://www.global-standard.org), as is worsted spinning
carried out with partner mills in China. GOTS addresses all post-shearing stages such as dyeing and finishing, and includes social criteria. VTOF is one of the first and few companies in
the U.S. to have partner spinning mills certified to GOTS and is getting all subsequent processing phases certified to the standard.
"O-Wool enables manufacturers to offer a wide variety of high quality apparel and home textiles to their consumers, but with a much greener footprint," says Matthew Mole, VTOF president,
noting that sales of O-Wool products grew 107 percent in 2007.
Current and recent designers using O-Wool yarns and fabrics include Bahar Shahpar, Linda Loudermilk, and Diane von Furstenberg, who featured 'O-Wool by Jasco' fabrics on the runway at
Earth Pledge's Future Fashion show in New York City in February, 2008. In addition, companies from North America to Europe and Asia using O-Wool include Ecobaby Organics (San Diego, CA),
Fox River Mills (Osage, IA), IBEX (Woodstock, VT), J. Crew (New York, NY), Loomstate (New York, NY), Maggie's Organics (Ypsilanti, MI), Patagonia (Ventura, CA), Wildlife Works (London,
UK), and Mitsukoshi Department Stores (Tokyo, Japan).
Organic wool is part of the approximately $1.9 billion global organic fiber industry, according to the Organic Exchange Organic Cotton Market Report 2007. For wool to be certified as
organic, the U.S. Department of Agriculture requires that sheep be fed organic feed and forage from the last third of gestation and be raised without the use of synthetic hormones or
pesticides. In addition, organic livestock producers are diligent in ensuring they do not exceed the natural carrying capacity of the land on which their animals graze, resulting in
agricultural practices that are healthy for both the animals and the environment.