CUMMING, Ga. (PRWEB)
October 13, 2021

An initiative from Field to Closet is making the concept of American grown and made 100% cotton scrubs a reality. To highlight the initiative, a kick-off event was held April 9th, 2021, at the Georgia Museum of Agriculture in Tifton, Georgia and the project culminated this fall with 15 hospitals in rural Georgia receiving medical scrubs at no cost. The initiative is made possible through the support of many organizations who saw a unique opportunity to support the local farmer, the local community and American-made manufacturing while also giving a nod of support to local healthcare facilities. Field to Closet, America Knits, Deltapine® seed, Helena® Agri-Enterprises, LLC, Nutrien Ag Solutions®, Georgia’s Rural Center, and HomeTown Health partnered to bring to life an end-to-end U.S. supply chain using cotton and supporting frontline healthcare workers.

“The Cotton Scrubs Project highlights the extraordinary results when people work together for the greater good. In this case, Georgia cotton growers and an all-US manufacturing supply chain created 100% cotton medical scrubs. The first orders of these scrubs are being provided at no cost to 15 rural Georgia hospitals, meaning the cotton comes full circle and medical workers will be wearing scrubs made from cotton grown in their own backyard,” said Jimmy Lewis, CEO of HomeTown Health.

“While we have always known American manufacturing is important, lessons learned from the pandemic brought that fact to the forefront. I could not be more excited to see these scrubs delivered to these hospitals. Rural hospital’s and rural communities are often marginalized or set aside when it comes to discussions of industry growth and of healthcare – but is of great encouragement to see rural health workers on the receiving end of this project – many of these facilities are key industries in their communities and their staff are some of the most dedicated medical professionals we know.”

The rural Georgia hospitals receiving medical cotton scrubs include Brooks County Hospital, Burke Medical Center, Crisp Regional Medical Center, Colquitt Regional Medical Center, East Georgia Regional Medical Center, Emanuel Medical Center, Irwin County Hospital, Jeff Davis Hospital, Jenkins County Medical, LifeBrite Community Hospital of Early, Memorial Hospital and Manor, Mitchell County Hospital, SGMC Berrien Campus, Southwell Medical, and Taylor Regional Hospital.

“The provision of scrubs for our staff was an extremely generous gesture and greatly appreciated. It was a great bright spot in a difficult year for staff to know they and their efforts are appreciated and that’s reflected in the gift. It also provides some financial relief to staff who would need to replace some of their scrubs due to wear and tear during the year.” shared Barry Bloom, CEO of Jeff Davis Hospital.

More Information about the Field to Closet Initiative

“Field to Closet was founded to work with brands and retailers to increase the use of cotton in the products, change the economic distribution of the supply chain to include the farmer, and allow people access to sustainably produced, 100 percent natural cotton fiber with traceability to farm where the Deltapine cotton was grown,” said Ed Jernigan, founder and CEO of Field to Closet. “It’s incredible to be part of a process that connects people and brands to the farm, along with increasing awareness of creating garments from beginning to end in the U.S.”

For the initial project, Field to Closet worked with America Knits in Swainsboro, Georgia, to source Deltapine seed cotton grown in Georgia, which is spun into yarn at Parkdale Mills in Rabun Gap, Georgia and woven into fabric in North Carolina at Hornwood, before arriving at America Knits for the final production of the scrubs. An additional benefit for the medical scrubs, this fabric is treated with PROTX2® AV. This antimicrobial technology inhibits the growth of bacteria and has been shown in lab tests to destroy viruses.

“To see the scrubs all the way through the process, from cotton grower to medical professional is extremely exciting,” said Steve Hawkins, president of America Knits. “Our team, as well as Field to Closet, the cotton growers, and our project partners, including Deltapine® seed, Georgia’s Rural Center, HomeTown Health, Nutrien Ag Solutions®, and Helena® Agri-Enterprises worked together for well over a year to bring the concept to market. Now, the scrubs are available for pre-order nationwide this fall for spring 2022 delivery.”

In contrast to traditional polyester fabrics used to make scrubs, cotton as a natural fiber is biodegradable, and recyclable. When cotton breaks down, it enriches the soil and leaves less of a carbon footprint than synthetic materials. Furthermore, farmers and researchers have worked over the years to reduce water and be more efficient with pesticide usage while producing more cotton on less land. Sustainability improvements such as a 31 percent increase in land use efficiency, 82 percent water reduction, and 30 percent GHG reduction over the last 35 years would not be realized without the research and development investments of Deltapine, the innovation and expertise of companies like Helena Agri-Enterprises LLC and Nutrien Ag Solutions, and the commitment of cotton farmers to the betterment of their land and the environment.

Through innovative, collaborative partnerships, this project utilizes Georgia-grown cotton from Deltapine® seed to re-shore American manufacturing by revitalizing an end-to-end U.S. supply chain. The initiative’s foundation is rooted in agriculture and establishes a Farmer GiveBack program to address a fundamental issue in the garment industry, which typically sees the brand or end seller with the most significant profit. The GiveBack program recognizes the rebirth of a robust cotton garment industry isn’t possible without the grower; therefore, this initiative is designed to ensure the grower is included financially by sharing in the profit of the goods sold.

Additionally, the cotton industry provides economic prosperity to rural areas where it is grown totaling a $7 billion value to the U.S. In Georgia, the second largest cotton producer in the country, agriculture is the top economic impact industry in the state. Furthermore, UGA Extension recently forecasted the cotton industry as a whole provides an economic impact of over $3 billion and provided approximately 53,000 cotton-related jobs in Georgia.

This initiative’s partnerships demonstrate creating a 100 percent U.S. supply chain and crafting products from U.S. grown cotton is more than wishful thinking. Creating a movement toward 100 percent cotton scrubs and other cotton garments creates a positive domino effect, resulting in higher cotton need and demand, fair compensation for farmer’s sustainability efforts, and a positive light on an all U.S., end-to-end supply chain. The overarching vision for this initiative serves as an inspiring example of the possibility and profitability for re-shoring American manufacturing and create a long-lasting impact on rural communities.

“It’s no secret – 2020 was tough on hospitals, including those in rural areas, and for this initiative to provide scrubs at no cost to these hospital’s is an extraordinary way to kick-off a truly worthy vision of using Georgia-grown cotton to create scrubs in the US.” emphasized Jimmy Lewis.

For more information about this project or to order the scrubs in bulk, go to AmericaKnits.com.

More Information about the Partners

To learn more about this initiative’s strategic partners, please use the links below:

America Knits

Deltapine® seed

Field to Closet

Georgia’s Rural Center

Helena Agri-Enterprises

HomeTown Health, LLC

Nutrien Ag Solutions®