Virginia company makes eco-friendly graduation gowns

A Virginia company is head of the class this year, with eco-friendly graduation gowns. Charles Fishburne reports.

Printing commencement programs on recycled paper is no longer enough for many eco-friendly colleges.  This spring, some graduation gowns are made up of recycled plastic bottles, for example.

Hodges:  It takes approximately 23 bottles to make one gown.

Donna Hodges is Vice President of Oak Hall Cap & Gown, in Salem, Virginia, one of several academic apparel makers offering green options this year.  Some disposable gowns decompose quickly in soil; others, like the plastic bottle gowns, can be reused or recycled.

Hodges:  This is one more way that they can take their green initiative a step further.

Manufacturers say the new gowns are a bit softer and more breathable than the traditional ones, but otherwise, grads should not be able to tell the difference.

Charles Fishburne, WCVE News.

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