I shop for yarn like I shop for groceries. When I consider what kind of food I want to eat, I consider the following characteristics, pretty much in order: 1) minimally processed; 2) local origin; and 3) organic production.

Fresh food without additives, preservatives, food colorants and the like is at the top of my list mainly for health reasons. Many of these additives are unnecessary. Consider that white mint chocolate chip ice cream tastes just as good as green. The less my food is processed the better and this goes for my yarn selection too. I choose natural fibers over synthetics or natural/synthetic blends since I can ultimately compost the former; the latter two will not decompose in my lifetime.

When considering plant fibers, I prefer those that are naturally fibrous (cotton, hemp, flax) over regenerated fibers (bamboo, soy) which require chemical inputs to make them into fibers. I look for beautiful natural colors for my projects. Why dye wool tan, brown, gray or black when sheep come in these colors naturally? Did you ever notice that sheep don’t fade even when they stand it the sun all day? That’s more than you will get from a dyed yarn.

I buy as much local food as possible, made possible by Farmers’ Markets. The food is fresher, has local character, and does not have to travel on a plane or boat to get to my plate. I like to buy yarn this way too. Luckily I have an earth-friendly local spinnery and the annual Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival. Many states have Sheep and Wool Festivals where you can buy yarn and find out the name of the animal that grew it. Local yarn shops often carry local yarns and can help you with your project when you really need it.

Just as the impact of your organic food purchase varies with the type of fruit or vegetable in your shopping cart, it is the same with yarn. Considering the amount of pesticide that is used to produce conventional cotton, organic cotton yarn is a must. I feel less strongly about hemp, since it is a relatively pest free crop and does not require the same amount of chemical inputs. If it is organic, that’s great. If not, that’s probably ok too. Organic wool is fine if geography allows that the animals can be raised without being burdened with parasites. My own goats and llamas are not organic because of the internal (not applied directly to their wool) wormers and vaccines they receive, as recommended by their veterinarian to keep them healthy.

One might think applying food purchasing criteria to yarn is a stretch since I won’t exactly be eating my scarf for dinner. I do, however, end up with a completely biodegradable product. It might be hard to think of composting something you spend days, weeks or months creating stitch by stitch. But let’s face it, everything has an end to its useful life and sometimes there are hand knit catastrophes (think puppy). Personally, I like the idea of my hand knits being biodegradable. It means that they will eventually continue on, just in some other form — a plant, or perhaps even sheep.