IS THE HUMAN HAIR TRADE ETHICAL? A Growing Trend to Consider Carefully
You’ve probably heard of fair-trade coffee and seen companies tout transparency for products like eggs and burger meat by allowing consumers to trace them back to the farm, but the production methods of many consumer goods still remain opaque. This includes products made from human hair, a market currently valued at nearly $7 billion. Wigs, weaves, and extensions aren’t new, but the demand for them is increasing as beauty influencers like the Kardashians show off their — or rather, someone else’s — locks online. Major women’s magazines like Vogue and online outlets like Refinery 29 praise products from places like The Hair Shop, which sells ready-to-wear clip-ins for at-home use and extensions for salon professionals. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with dressing up your tresses with someone else’s, the current market for these products is ripe with inequities. The vast majority of hair production — or “harvesting” (the industry term) — and export is concentrated in two places: Hong Kong and India. And the U.S. has the highest import rates of human hair products. It takes about two years for hair to grow to a harvestable length, and as countries develop economically, their female residents become more hesitant to give up their hair. As a result, harvesters have turned to less economically developed countries in search of more product to meet the growing demand. In Myanmar, where the minimum wage is $2.70 per hour, women are wooed into selling their hair at a rate over 50 times that. Some heads of hair fetch up to $140 , which goes a long way in the region, but they also pay an unfortunate price of shame and embarrassment when they cut their hair. Then, there’s the separate issue of the labor needed to process these products. According to The Hustle, workers in Myanmar and Bangladesh who used to farm now work processing hair for a mere $1.40 a day. By contrast, these products sell for $100 to upward of $1,000 to consumers. And the work isn’t easy. It involves washing, detangling, hand-knotting, and sewing the delicate strands. Just as apparel companies have faced mounting pressure to fairly compensate those producing goods in factories abroad, the human hair trade faces growing concerns about the ethics of the labor required to keep up with rising demand.
SPROUT YOUR KIDS’ IMAGINATION
With 3 Fun Earth Day Projects
With spring officially underway, April showers starting to bring May flowers, and Earth Day on April 22, now is a great time for outdoor family activities.
One for the Birds Making a pine cone bird feeder is a fun and inexpensive project. In addition to creating and hanging your bird feeder, you’ll get hours of extra entertainment from watching the birds it will attract to your yard. If your kids are older, take photos of the birds or note their colors and features and look them up in a field guide or online. This craft just requires a pine cone (the bigger the better), peanut butter, and some twine or string. Top the peanut butter with “sprinkles” of mixed birdseed or small pieces of nuts and fruit to appeal to even more birds. For full instructions, visit TheSpruce.com and search “pine cone bird feeder.” An Egg-cellent Planter Save those eggshells from breakfast (and the paper carton, too!) and use them to start a garden! Your little ones will enjoy planting some seeds, watering them, and watching them sprout and grow into something new. When the sprouts are big enough and it’s warm enough outside, you can plant the shell and carton directly into the ground! This easy project just requires rinsed eggshell halves, some lightly moistened potting soil, and seeds of your choosing. Note that smaller seeds, like those for herbs, lettuces, peppers, or tomatoes, work best for this project. For full instructions, visit GardenBetty.com and search “starting seeds in eggshells.” Stick With Magic Nature is a magical place. Many kids know this instinctively and often point out things adults take for granted or overlook, like bright-colored leaves, fun-shaped rocks, and acorn “hats.” Making a nature wand is a great way to let your kids explore their environment, whether that’s in your backyard, on a neighborhood walk, or in your favorite park. Let their imaginations run wild with what their magic wand can do! This simple project starts with a stick and masking tape. Your kids add all the extra flair by hunting for natural treasures and sticking them onto their wand. Complete instructions can be found at LaughingKidsLearn.com/nature-wands-outdoor-play.
If you’re looking to add some gain to your mane, do some research first and consider all that’s gone into the locks you find online.
2 •
(619) 994-1110
Published by Newsletter Pro • www.newsletterpro.com
Made with FlippingBook HTML5