The FTC is warning companies to stop mislabeling clothing and household products as bamboo when they are made from manufactured rayon products fibers. Though rayon is originally derived from plants, including bamboo, it is a manmade fiber created from plant cellulose and treated with harsh chemicals that are not environmentally friendly. To sell rayon as bamboo is an effort to cash in on the recent environmentally friendly reputation of bamboo products.
Consumerist.com says, “In other words, these companies advertising their rayon wares as renewable, green, and cuddly bamboo is something akin to illustrating a package of cookies and cream ice cream with a picture of wheat fields and advertising its whole-grain content. Sure, there's flour in there
somewhere, but there's been so much processing since then that touting the grain content is sort of beyond the point by now.”
Read more at
FTC To Retailers: Bamboo And Rayon Are Not The Same Thing
And the FTC news release,
FTC Warns 78 Retailers, Including Wal-Mart, Target, and Kmart, to Stop Labeling and Advertising Rayon Textile Products as "Bamboo"
