Viewpoint: ‘Regenerate or die?’ Fashion industry co-opts sustainability buzzwords like ‘regenerative’ and ‘circular’ — but what do they really mean?

Patagonia's "Road to Regenerative" t-shirt. Credit: Patagonia
Patagonia's "Road to Regenerative" t-shirt. Credit: Patagonia

The North Face and Patagonia now tout clothing made of regenerative cotton. And Secteur 6, a new Indian-American brand that uses only regenerative-grown materials like rose-petal silk, is teaming up with the streetwear brand Freak City L.A. to produce a capsule collection that includes regenerative cotton graffiti T-shirts that read: “Regenerate or Die.”

But what in the world does that even mean?

Advocates describe it as a holistic approach, working with nature, rather than trying to control it. That means foregoing various industrial agriculture practices, which could include pesticides, store-bought fertilizers, tilling or neat little rows of a single crop. Also, no weed-pulling.

The idea is to mix different types of plants in the same field, allowing the nourishing cover crops to spread wildly, co-mingling with, say, corn or cotton. It looks messy, but chickens, sheep and cattle get to graze on the edibles, and in return they fertilize the fields with their droppings. Bingo: healthy soil.

Follow the latest news and policy debates on sustainable agriculture, biomedicine, and other ‘disruptive’ innovations. Subscribe to our newsletter.

Fashion is extremely late to the carbon sequestering party — the food industry was way ahead — but with multiple brands publicly promising to become carbon neutral, it is now firmly committed. Better late than never.

Read the original post

{{ reviewsTotal }}{{ options.labels.singularReviewCountLabel }}
{{ reviewsTotal }}{{ options.labels.pluralReviewCountLabel }}
{{ options.labels.newReviewButton }}
{{ userData.canReview.message }}

Related Articles

Infographic: Global regulatory and health research agencies on whether glyphosate causes cancer

Infographic: Global regulatory and health research agencies on whether glyphosate causes cancer

Does glyphosate—the world's most heavily-used herbicide—pose serious harm to humans? Is it carcinogenic? Those issues are of both legal and ...

Most Popular

Screenshot-2026-06-17-at-12.31.01-PM
Viewpoint: The dangerous influence of ‘woke’ post-modernism in science
Screenshot-2026-06-26-at-10.14.50-AM
Viewpoint: The facts behind the grifter-promoting wellness and anti-aging peptide craze: Don’t waste your money
ChatGPT-Image-Jun-25-2026-12_23_17-PM
No, Bill Gates did not secretly engineer ticks to promote veganism
ChatGPT-Image-Jun-26-2026-01_21_33-PM
How the dubious, Trump-backed, addictive drug kratom could enrich cabinet secretary Markwayne Mullin
ChatGPT-Image-Jun-19-2026-04_11_20-PM
Daubert for Dummies—Scientific Reliability in U.S. Courts: Daubert, Rule 702, and Made-for-Litigation Evidence
ChatGPT-Image-Mar-10-2026-01_39_01-PM
Viewpoint—“Miracle molecule” debunked: Why acemannan supplements don’t work
Screenshot-2026-06-25-at-11.18.03-AM
Viewpoint: Appreciating a simpler past without swallowing the misleading ‘nature is healthier and safer’ myth
ChatGPT-Image-Jun-26-2026-12_10_16-PM
Europe’s heat wave fueled recycled climate-denial narratives and harassment of climate scientists
ChatGPT-Image-Jun-17-2026-10_52_43-AM
Anguished parents, doctors in tears: Utah’s long measles outbreak takes a toll
Screenshot-2026-06-25-at-1.48.40-PM
Glyphosate affirmed as safe: Supreme Court rejects lawsuit claiming Roundup herbicide causes cancer, upholding EPA determination
ChatGPT-Image-Jun-26-2026-11_34_33-AM
Viewpoint: RFK, Jr.’s vaccine subterfuge campaign now flies below the media radar
Screenshot-2026-06-22-at-9.04.46-PM
Kennedy's nutrition prescription for medical schools: Real problem, bad cure
ChatGPT-Image-Jun-22-2026-01_30_11-PM
Facts & Fallacies podcast: Psychedelics for PTSD? Examining RFK, Jr's claims about ibogaine
Screenshot-2026-06-15-at-1.55.27-PM
America's trust in Trump-Kennedy's CDC health recommendations is plunging
glp menu logo outlined

Get news on human & agricultural genetics and biotechnology delivered to your inbox.