All of our clothes are made with organic cotton.
For MUJI, cotton is one of the most valuable natural materials.
Great amounts of effort and time are required to cultivate cotton and the use of pesticides was a common practice in the past. Reconsidering the impact of cotton cultivation on environment and the cultivators, we have been continuously working to increase the percentage of organic cotton in our apparel for more than 20 years. Our organic cotton is cultivated in soil that has not been treated with pesticides or chemical fertilizers for at least 3 years. Since 2018, we only use organic cotton in its share within the raw materials.
Cotton and Pesticides
Cotton cultivation demands a large amount of pesticide, so much so that it is said to account for about a quarter of the world's pesticide use — growing cotton requires a lot of time and effort. It's not hard to imagine that all of that pesticide residue lingering in the soil can have major consequences on the growers, the animals, and the people who live nearby.
Materials That Are Wholesome for the Ones Who Make Them Too
At MUJI, we craft our products while upholding the spirit of "wholesome living." It wouldn't truly be wholesome living if the ones who produce the materials for the products we make are exposed to danger. We are dedicated to sustainable farming that is beneficial to the environment and producers. And so, we decided on using Organic Cotton — which is grown on soil that has not been treated with chemical fertilizers or pesticides for at least three years.
Manufacturing that Connects with the Growers
Still, organic cotton makes up less than 1% of all cotton produced; this is because the yield of organic cotton is only about 70% per planted area — compared to ordinary cotton grown using agrochemicals.
To solve this, we at MUJI have started many initiatives that take into consideration the impact on the environment, the farmers, the local people, and the ecosystem.
Learning about the process of producing organic cotton deepened our appreciation of the importance of the materials that go into crafting our products. And so, in 2014, our product developers visited farms around the world to experience hands-on sowing or harvesting — according to the season.
And So It Manifests
As the efforts came to fruition, by 2018, nearly all of the clothes we made were made using organic cotton — to the point that in 2019, we no longer needed to explicitly mention "Made with Organic Cotton" on our products.
To encourage organic cotton farming, in 2021, we launched an initiative providing farmers in India with two free seeds of organic cotton for every T-shirt sold.
And naturally, being implementers of organic cotton, we wish to keep up wholesome manufacturing that is beneficial to the growers and the buyers.