Lady Farmer Gives Back
We began Lady Farmer with the mission to create clothes that we love, and that are produced with care and concern for the planet, the producers and the consumers. We also wanted to help consumers understand the devastating effects of widespread practices in the fashion industry, and to try and affect a shift towards a more sustainable system. This begins with an understanding of our clothing as, fundamentally, an agricultural product.
The Land Is Our Future
So, it’s befitting that one of our biggest tenets as Lady Farmers is caring for the land under our feet. Creating soil health is not only essential to a healthy food system and therefore human health, but is also viewed increasingly as an important step towards mitigating climate change. We know that land is widely abused in industrial agriculture, and therefore in the modern apparel production industry as well. When we set out on our journey to creating a sustainable clothing line, we found that the road to creating earth-friendly, responsibly produced, American grown products has many obstacles. Due to changes in trade laws in the 90's, textile and apparel production is only a fraction of what it once was in the US. Since the system was so fractured, we were faced with the task of creating our own path in our mission as Lady Farmer. This means sourcing as responsibly as possible, contributing to the build out of a healthier, more sustainable manufacturing system where we can, and helping to promote a market for local textile production.
As a means to this end and as a way of giving back, Lady Farmer is a member of 1% for the planet, a global movement that supports environmental solutions.Through this organization, Lady Farmer commits to contributing 1% of our sales annually to the non-profit of our choice, Fibershed.
What is Fibershed? Fibershed is a non-profit that was started in California by a Rebecca Burgess. Years ago, Rebecca recognized the harmful effects of fast fashion, and challenged herself to only wear clothes “whose dyes, fibers and labor were sourced from a region no larger than 150 miles.”
From that project, she and her partners created a local textile system. Almost a decade later, Fibershed now is empowering regional communities all over the united states to develop their own systems, and experiment with regenerative farming practices that are good for people and the planet.
Lady Farmer is active within the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia (DMV) regional Fibershed's recently formed non-profit, Chesapeake Fibershed, and aims to “build collaborations between farmers, ranchers, land-managers, makers, and end-users to move carbon out of our atmosphere, and into our soils — while building our local economies, and generating heirloom quality and place based durable goods and textiles.”
How can you, as a consumer, support land regeneration and climate change reversal? You become a powerful change agent when you are aware of the issues involved and make conscious purchasing decisions that reflect your personal values. Every purchase you make from us contributes to building regional fibersheds and healing our soils through regenerative practices. We invite you to explore the Climate Beneficial Wool, hemp and organic cotton clothing, bedding and other products in the Lady Farmer store! Thank you!
