Cotton or polyester?

Is natural always more sustainable than synthetic?

Cotton is a natural fibre obtained from plants.

It has been made into clothing for hundreds of years.

Cotton plants growing in the USA.

Polyester is a synthetic fibre. It was first made in 1941 and is produced chemically from natural gas or oil.

Polyester can be mixed with other fibres or used on its own to make clothes such as fleece jackets.

Which type of fibre do you think is the most sustainable; cotton or polyester?

Click here to look at the life cycles for cotton and polyester.