Production                                                                        

The Earth Collection is owned and managed by a Danish team, who are also responsible for the concept, ideas and designs. Having been naturally brought up with a certain ethic and respect for the natural environment around us, the philosophy behind The Earth Collection has always been to produce products with respect for both the natural environment and for the people involved.

For each phase of production, there are specific instructions on what is allowed to be used. An ecological concept would be practically impossible to control. TEC are not involved in the growing of the raw materials, and as for example ecologically grown cotton is very expensive, this would not fit into the price policy. Instead the philosophy is to produce environmentally friendly products, where specific instructions are followed in the phases where TEC are involved, and where it can be controlled continuously.

To give you a better understanding of procedures, please find below a short description of each phase in the production:

Pre-wash                                                                         

First, impurities such as dirt and grease are removed. This pre-wash is done with a very mild soap solution or with enzymes. In order to achieve a homogeneous colour and shade, the fabrics are bleached gently with the use of hydrogen peroxide in a closed system, ensuring that neither the workforce nor the environment is harmed in the process, as hydrogen peroxide dissolves into water and air.

Dyeing                                                                             

The dyeing process uses exclusively dyes that do not contain heavy metals and have a very high fixation rate of approximately 94%-96%.

Most importantly, only dye houses which clean and recycle their waste water are worked with.

Aftertreatment                                                                

No harmful softeners or surface treatments are used in aftertreatment. The soft surface and handle is instead obtained with enzymes or by mechanical means. The ramie/cotton quality is an example of a fabric which is treated with a combination of the above two methods. First the fabrics are washed with enzymes, then later peached mechanically (the surface is "brushed", tearing up the shorter fibres for the finishing soft touch). To reduce shrinkage, the fabrics are additionally treated with a mechanical process called sizing.

Production                                                                        

In the production, The Earth Collection's main concern is in relation to the working environment. Working with the same factories for up to 10 years, they have been fortunate enough to be able to influence and improve things for the better. Yet there is always room for improvement, and they are progressively working and dealing with these issues.

Lately, one of the factories that TEC has worked with for a long time has relocated to new premises, greatly improving the conditions for the workforce. Another finished the construction of a 4000 m2 first-class factory. Both the above improvements make all the effort worthwhile.

Products                                                                            

Only natural fabrics such as cotton, silk, hemp and ramie, and natural materials and accessories (e.g. coconut and bamboo buttons) are used in The Earth Collection's products. Only synthetic thread is used for sewing as cotton thread is not durable enough.

All hangtags and cartons are made from recycled paper. The plastic packaging is also recyclable and the inks on hang tags and labels are water based.

Leftover fabrics from production are reused wherever possible. For instance these fabrics were employed to make the Rag Bag and Purse which was introduced in Summer 2003, and it is intended to constantly develop new items in this manner.

To sum up the above, the utmost is done to use materials and methods that have the least impact on the environment. The Earth Collection try to make sure that everyone involved in production is well treated, which means that no child or prison labour is used in the production of The Earth Collection's products.