IN THE WEEDS
If you are an eco-conscious cooking professional, you will soon be able to wear that fact on your sleeve.
Chef-types attending
EAT! Vancouver, the Everything Food + Cooking Festival this weekend will want to check out the booth for
Chefwear by Blackwood. The Vancouver-based company that specializes in uniforms and apparel for the food and hospitality industries will be introducing a new fabric at the show -- one that is made from a blend of naturally grown hemp and bamboo fibres.
Sounds kind of scratchy, no? A prospect no chef juggling flaming sauté pans in each hand wants to deal with. But contrary to expectations, the material is as soft and flexible as cotton or linen. What’s more, it hangs just like the more traditional fabrics and may be even more durable, absorbent and breathable. It even has an anti-bacterial quality – good for when action on the line gets mean and sweaty.
We guess we don’t have to get into the virtues of bamboo. It’s one of the most easily renewable resources on the planet. But the company has also been careful to source from suppliers who harvest their materials from areas where no pesticides or chemicals are used and who practice fair trade employment policies. (The bamboo must be hand-harvested.)
All that, and potentially at a cost only $20 more than a the usual 65/35 cotton/poly twill style.
Now, go, cook, and save the planet.
