Boody is known for their basic essentials (bras, underwear, loungewear, etc…). What people may not know is that sustainable, eco-friendly clothing has been Boody’s goal since the beginning.
However, unlike your typical eco-conscious fashion brand that uses materials like Lyocell, Tencel, organic cotton, and EcoVera, the Australian clothing brand makes their pieces out of bamboo.
More specifically, Boody uses organic, toxin-free bamboo, a plant with a whole host of environmental benefits. All Boody bamboo is sourced from China and is grown by Hebei Jigao Chemical Fiber Company, which holds the patent on the process of turning bamboo into yarn. The 100% bamboo yarn that Boody uses is certified organic by The Organic Crop Improvement Association. What this means is that each stalk of bamboo is guaranteed to have been grown naturally and pesticide-free.
Why did Boody choose bamboo over other organic materials like cotton?
First, bamboo is the fastest growing woody plant in the world (bamboo stalks can grow over 100 feet tall and one Japanese species was found to grow over three feet in one day). There are also over 1600 species of Bamboo in Asia alone, and these species have been found everywhere from the mountains to the tropics. Thus, bamboo’s high growth rate coupled with its ability to grow in a variety of landscapes makes it a sustainable plant to harvest.
Second, harvesting bamboo causes no damage to the surrounding environment and has actually been proven to help the re-growth of bamboo. As bamboo is a grass, when you cut off part of it, rather than die, it regenerates. In addition, bamboo only requires one-time planting. Once it’s planted, there is very little care needed to maintain it.
Further, bamboo grows very densely, which makes it a highly efficient crop in terms of land use. It also helps to absorb CO2 just like trees do, and generates up to 35 percent more oxygen than the equivalent number of trees. Ultimately, the mere growth of bamboo helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change.
Another major benefit of bamboo, when compared with other crops used to make clothing, is its minimal water use. Bamboo is rarely irrigated and for bamboo that is, there is evidence to support the fact that the water-use efficiency of bamboo is double that of trees.
Plus, when you compare bamboo to cotton, there is a clear winner. Where the latter takes over 5,000 gallons of water to produce two pounds of cotton, the former requires just 130 gallons of water to produce three pounds of bamboo, and there is no irrigation required.
Beyond the sustainability of the plant Boody chooses to make their clothing out of, the brand also ensures that every aspect of their process, from harvesting the bamboo to spinning it into viscose yarn, is also eco-friendly and ethical. Key features of Boody’s process include growing the bamboo without pesticides, fertilizers, and with low water consumption, responsibly producing the yarn by workers paid fair wages, treating the yarn with natural dyes only, and using computer-aided knitting to ensure little to no fabric is wasted during the sewing process.
Ultimately, the Australian brand knew that if they wanted to specialize in basics, which they consider to be the most important pieces in a person’s closet, then sustainability had to be top of mind.
As Boody puts it on their website, “Everyday essentials are perhaps the most important pieces in your wardrobe and our mission is to provide you with modern, high-quality basics that naturally fit who you are. That’s why we strive to produce thoughtful clothing that meets all your needs whilst being high quality, durable and sustainable. All Boody garments are made from organically grown bamboo and produced adhering to the highest standards for both the planet and our workers.”
Further, even Boody’s packaging is eco-friendly. It is recycled, recyclable, and is also printed with vegetable-based ink.
Boody’s collection is currently made up of men’s, women’s, and baby basics. For women, this includes bras, underwear, socks, leggings, bodysuits, loungewear, and activewear. For men, the collection mostly consists of underwear, socks, t-shirts, and long-sleeved shirts. Finally, Boody’s baby collection features everything from adorable onesies and t-shirts to blankets, beanies, and booties.
