# Have you read "The travels of a t-shirt in the global economy"? I'm more confused!



## mothertongues (Aug 8, 2005)

I just finished reading the book by Pietra Rivoli - The Travels of a t-shirt in the global economy. She follows her Walgreens T from cotton to gin to mill to factory to used clothing sold in Africa. Really interesting read - although I now have to find the Second Edition to read, because so many of the laws changed since 2005. 

I learnt a lot about the cotton subsidies in the US (did you know a Made in China t-shirt's cotton probably came from Texas?) and how it affects the world cotton market - in a bad way... I just realized everything is shades of gray - I thought "Made in America" would be better (for the people involved) than "Made in China", but after reading the book I'm not sure anymore! Mmm. Tough one. 

Anyway, I'm not sure if anyone else cares about the economy of making a t-shirt, but I found it an interesting read which will make me think for a long time! 

Also, I didn't know that the "Made in ..." label probably only tells you where the t-shirt was stiched together - the cotton, yarn, fabric, cutting, etc was probably grown/made in other countries. Who knew!

What I missed is a review of Fair Trade. She covered free trade - a different thing altogether. 

Anyway, if anyone else read it, tell me what you thought of it!


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## Solmu (Aug 15, 2005)

mothertongues said:


> Anyway, I'm not sure if anyone else cares about the economy of making a t-shirt, but I found it an interesting read which will make me think for a long time!


Thanks for the review. I've been thinking about reading it for a long time, but hadn't got around to it. The reviews I'd read (mostly very positive) were from economists and the like. I was wondering how interesting it would be for someone who was also specifically looking at t-shirts (not just as an example product).



mothertongues said:


> Also, I didn't know that the "Made in ..." label probably only tells you where the t-shirt was stiched together - the cotton, yarn, fabric, cutting, etc was probably grown/made in other countries. Who knew!


I don't know *actual* practice, because I haven't read the book or have the understanding and research the author does. But my understanding from the labelling laws and related reading I've done is that in the US you need to get a couple of stages away to ignore country of origin: which means the raw cotton could well have been grown somewhere else, but was probably spun into yarn, and at the least woven into cloth, in the US. Which still means there could be global transportation you were trying to avoid, issues, etc. - but it's not a total free for all either.

In Australia the laws are looser, which makes this practice of processing, processing, processing... then calling it "Made in Australia", a lot easier to legally accomplish.


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## mothertongues (Aug 8, 2005)

Solmu said:


> Thanks for the review. I've been thinking about reading it for a long time, but hadn't got around to it. The reviews I'd read (mostly very positive) were from economists and the like. I was wondering how interesting it would be for someone who was also specifically looking at t-shirts (not just as an example product).


Well, I found it really interesting, and learnt a lot while reading. But now I want to get the second edition, which apparently says more about the environmental aspect too. 



Solmu said:


> I don't know *actual* practice, because I haven't read the book or have the understanding and research the author does. But my understanding from the labelling laws and related reading I've done is that in the US you need to get a couple of stages away to ignore country of origin: which means the raw cotton could well have been grown somewhere else, but was probably spun into yarn, and at the least woven into cloth, in the US. Which still means there could be global transportation you were trying to avoid, issues, etc. - but it's not a total free for all either.
> 
> In Australia the laws are looser, which makes this practice of processing, processing, processing... then calling it "Made in Australia", a lot easier to legally accomplish.


She quoted someone who toured a Chinese factory, and saw "Made in ..." labels from all over the world. Basically the factory was sewing these labels in, then shipping it to the appropriate country, from where it would be shipped to the US. All to get around the quota system of the US. Illegally. Makes you think.


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## Solmu (Aug 15, 2005)

mothertongues said:


> Well, I found it really interesting, and learnt a lot while reading. But now I want to get the second edition, which apparently says more about the environmental aspect too.


Thanks - I'll look for the second edition now that I know there are two.



mothertongues said:


> She quoted someone who toured a Chinese factory, and saw "Made in ..." labels from all over the world. Basically the factory was sewing these labels in, then shipping it to the appropriate country, from where it would be shipped to the US. All to get around the quota system of the US. Illegally. Makes you think.


Ah, okay. That makes sense (err, and sucks... but makes sense). Unfortunately there's also a certain amount of _legal_ wrangling that can be done as well, so even if a company is above board _Made In_ won't necessarily mean _Made In_ by most consumers definitions.


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## mothertongues (Aug 8, 2005)

Solmu said:


> Ah, okay. That makes sense (err, and sucks... but makes sense). Unfortunately there's also a certain amount of _legal_ wrangling that can be done as well, so even if a company is above board _Made In_ won't necessarily mean _Made In_ by most consumers definitions.


Very true. I found out the cotton could be grown in one country, made into yarn in another country, spun into fabric in another country, cut into pieces in another country, and made into a t-shirt in still another country - and the Made In is just the last country (where it is stitched together).

But the bigger thing that struck me in the book, was how the cotton subsidies work in the USA. Now I don't think a _Made in the USA_ t-shirt is necessarily "better" than anywhere else (in terms of people and the environment helped in the process). The way the government subsidize the cotton farmers, just doesn't make sense in a global economy. Anyway, I know a lot of people probably will disagree, but the book does a good job of explaining the consequences of the subsidies.


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