The image shows a product made from bamboo-derived rayon, which is expanding its store in Cambodia, and its description.
In Siem Reap, where the Angkor Wat temples are located in Cambodia, an apparel store specializing in bamboo materials (derived from bamboo) had opened. The shopkeeper told us that they already have four stores in Cambodia. He told me that all the materials are made in Cambodia.
(I have yet to find out which company's capital)
As you know, bamboo is a plant with an outstandingly strong life force. It grows phenomenally fast and does not require pesticides. For this reason, some companies have been marketing fibers made from bamboo as having a "low environmental impact. In Japan, many of them are sold as products.
However, the fact that bamboo fibers are strictly regulated by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and criticized by environmental groups is not well known in Japan.
To complicate matters, there are two types of bamboo-derived fibers.
One is called "bamboo linen." Bamboo linen, like hemp, is made by peeling off the green outer skin of bamboo and removing the inner fibers before turning them into fiber. The method is simple. The outer skin of the bamboo is shaved off with a knife and the fibers are removed.
I actually tried to do the same thing. However, the fiber is not only stiff but also prickly and cannot be used for clothing. I think it is a good material for bags and other small articles because the fiber is very strong.
In fact, the most widely distributed bamboo-derived fiber on the market is called "bamboo rayon. I think it is safe to say that almost all clothing made of bamboo rayon is made of bamboo rayon.
Bamboo rayon" is completely different in appearance from "bamboo linen.
Bamboo rayon is soft, pleasant to the touch, lustrous, and wrinkle-resistant. When you hold the woven fabric in your hand, you will notice that it has a very smooth texture, just like conventional rayon.
That's no wonder. Bamboo-derived "bamboo rayon" is a chemical fiber produced using the same manufacturing process as rayon that has been on the market until now.
The process involves melting down bamboo at a factory and extracting the fibers before pulping them. Harmful chemicals are then used to artificially create "bamboo rayon.
Bamboo rayon is marketed under the slogan "environmentally friendly fiber" because it is made from bamboo. However, the production process is hardly "environmentally friendly. Especially in a country like Cambodia, where environmental protection laws are not well established, it is one of the main sources of environmental pollution.
( to be continued )
English 
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