{"id":3187,"date":"2023-10-06T11:53:19","date_gmt":"2023-10-06T16:53:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cf.iisd.net\/ssi\/?post_type=blog&#038;p=3187"},"modified":"2023-10-06T11:53:20","modified_gmt":"2023-10-06T16:53:20","slug":"from-cotton-ginner-to-retail-rack-how-much-do-we-really-know-about-sustainable-cotton","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ssi\/blog\/from-cotton-ginner-to-retail-rack-how-much-do-we-really-know-about-sustainable-cotton\/","title":{"rendered":"From Cotton Ginner to Retail Rack: How much do we really know about \u201csustainable\u201d cotton?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"From Cotton Ginner to Retail Rack: How much do we really know about \u201csustainable\u201d cotton?\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MgBFyZt-PRQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cotton. Once a wild perennial plant, it is now a trillion-dollar industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the most common natural fibre in the textile industry, cotton is used for a wide range of purposes\u2014from clothing and upholstery to hygiene products and medical equipment.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But hidden behind our t-shirts and towels are over&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/report\/2023-global-market-report-cotton\">100 million households in 75 countries<\/a>&nbsp;that rely on cotton cultivation for a living.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/report\/2023-global-market-report-cotton\">Nine out of 10<\/a>&nbsp;of these households are in lower-income countries. And they are grappling with challenges such as water scarcity, pest management, and low prices and incomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) such as Better Cotton, Organic, and Cotton made in Africa seek to address these challenges.&nbsp;They set sustainability requirements for cotton farmers and processors to meet in exchange for certifying their produce as VSS compliant, which can help them fetch&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/report\/2023-global-market-report-cotton\">up to 50% higher prices<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VSS-compliant cotton production has&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/report\/2023-global-market-report-cotton\">doubled every 2.5 years since 2008<\/a>&nbsp;and now accounts for at least a quarter of global cotton production.&nbsp;This form of recognition can help consumers make more responsible purchasing choices. But how much do we really know about \u201csustainable\u201d cotton?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A lack of transparency in cotton textile value chains is hindering VSSs\u2019 impact. By the time a garment reaches the retail rack, much of the information about where and how it was produced is lost.&nbsp;Where did the cotton come from? What price was paid to the farmer? What environmental and socio-economic impacts were generated? Did all stages of its processing comply with a VSS?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To help answer these questions, IISD partnered with fashion retailer Kappahl to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/brief\/cotton-supply-chains-kappahl-project\">map the value chain<\/a>&nbsp;for select organic cotton garments.&nbsp;We mapped the identities, locations, and operations of upstream suppliers.&nbsp;And we engaged with them to collect sustainability data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This mapping could help Kappahl address concerns and make more informed decisions when purchasing from suppliers. It may also help them to verify organic certification and disclose more reliable sustainability information to their customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you\u2019re interested in learning more, check out our research:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/report\/2023-global-market-report-cotton\">Global Market Report: Cotton prices and sustainability<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/brief\/cotton-supply-chains-kappahl-project\">Improving Visibility in Cotton Supply Chains to Achieve Transparency:&nbsp;The Kappahl pilot project<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/publications\/report\/voluntary-sustainability-standards-south-asia-cotton-supply\">Voluntary Sustainability Standards in South Asia:&nbsp;A focus on the cotton sector in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exploring the complex value chains behind our t-shirts and towels and asking why we need to get better at tracing garments from the store back to the farm.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":3189,"parent":0,"template":"","class_list":["post-3187","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ssi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/3187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ssi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ssi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/blog"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ssi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ssi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ssi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}