Good question, something I've though about many times, but never really come up with a solid answer . . . I think there are a lot of factors to consider, depending on the product.

I know if it's organic, any farms involved may have to wait up to 8 (?) years before the property can grow anything to organic certified standards, to ensure there are no residual chemicals. They may have to recoup costs from this waiting, and any production of anything not up to organic standard . . .

It stands to reason that if you buy a t-shirt for 2 pounds then someone somewhere is getting paid a fraction of that to make the t-shirt.

However the tactic of laying guilt on the consumer to make them buy 'eco' garments won't work either as there is already a huge amount of the population who have grown up with the disposable style of consumerism that exists on the highstreet.

The trick to this is to produce 'beautiful' clothes and products that stand shoulder to shoulder with the cheaper products but have the right green credentials. Yes, they cost more but people are far more likely to spend more when they know they're firstly getting something that looks great and secondly isn't harmful to the environment or people's human rights.

A good example of this can be seen here: www.tamasyngambell.com