Hi katscan,
Sorry for the delay in this reply. I see I missed a couple of posts in this thread when I only replied to the last one 
Unfortunately there aren’t any factory direct manufacturers right in New Orleans and the closest ones are in Lafayette and Baton Rouge (see post #10 here). There are some “better” possibilities in New Orleans however including some which carry latex and they are in post #4 here.
I don’t think that allergies would present an issue with either latex or polyfoam for most people … although some people with MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity) may do better to avoid polyfoam or at least let it air out for months before using it. In most cases though … polyfoam is so common all around us (furniture, car seats and almost everywhere else) that it would be unlikely that someone who was very sensitive to this wouldn’t know about it already. The polyfoam that is poured in North America is usually CertiPur certified for offgassing and would be “safe” for most people. Most latex including blended and natural Talalay are also Oeko-Tex certified which is an even higher level of certification for offgassing and harmful substances.
I believe they use an inherent rayon type fiber (a cellulosic fiber impregnated with silica) which is also very safe IMO. I’m not certain of this though so to make sure it would be a good idea to call them. There is more about various fire retardant methods at the bottom of this article. The Chicago Tribune published a very informative article on fire retardant chemicals recently which is very interesting reading.
For most people … synthetic foams if they are well made without the most harmful chemicals are generally fine in terms of safety but of course each person may have different sensitivities or different ideas of what they consider safe so each of us needs to answer “how safe is safe” on an individual basis … and hopefully with enough facts to make an informed decision. Some people for example would only consider a mattress that used natural latex, natural fibers, innersprings, or other natural or organic materials because they believe that for them any level of potential harm or synthetic substances are too much and they are willing to pay for a much larger safety margin (or in some cases just more natural or organic materials on principle alone) than others would consider necessary.
[quote]
I realise I don’t know if all the natural green hype is just wishful thinking, the hope that if one gets closer to natural that one will be healthier. She has no time for this search but knows it will obsess me until the resolution; then she will sleep and I’ll find another problem.
[/quote]’
There certainly is a lot of “greenwashing” in the industry and a lot of misinformation as well. For example most of the claims about the “plant based” or “soy based” polyfoams are greatly exaggerated when all they have done is replace a small portion (usually under 20%) of one of the two main petrochemical ingredients used to make polyfoam (the polyol portion) with a plant based substitute which has been chemically altered beyond recognition anyway. This means all of the other ingredients (the isocyanates) and 80% of the polyols are still petrochemical based and yet many people are calling this 'natural" foam.
Thanks for the kind words
And just in case you haven’t seen this … the list of members of this site who specialize in working with customers online or “on the phone” are in post #21 here.
Phoenix