Page 17 – Better Cotton Initiative

Carbon Insetting: What Is It, and How Does It Differ From Carbon Offsetting?

Joe Morphet on May 4, 2023

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Vibhor Yadav. Location: Kodinar, Gujarat, India. 2019. Description: Cotton plant.

By Nathanael Dominici, Climate Change Manager at Better Cotton

A term that is regularly used in discussions around climate action is ‘carbon offsetting’, a practice by which a reduction or removal of greenhouse gas emissions is made in order to offset emissions created elsewhere. Through this mechanism, companies frequently compensate for their emissions by purchasing credits from an organisation that is implementing climate projects which generate certified credits, for example through reforestation.

However, a new term that is becoming more common in climate discourse is ‘carbon insetting’. What does this term mean, how does it differ from carbon offsetting, and what is Better Cotton doing in this space? Ahead of a session on carbon finance that we will be running at the Better Cotton Conference in June, let’s explore what carbon insetting means.

What Is Carbon Insetting?

Carbon insetting is similar to carbon offsetting, in the sense that it acts to reduce the impact of greenhouse gas emissions on the planet. However, the key difference is that while offsetting can often see harmful emissions offset by activities that aren’t linked to the original source of the emissions – such as a European airline paying for credits to finance reforestation in South America – carbon insetting instead refers to interventions that reduce the greenhouse gas emissions within a company’s own value chains.

Insetting promotes a more holistic view of the full lifecycle of a business’s activities, taking into account both upstream activities (e.g. the purchase of raw materials and transport) and downstream activities (e.g. product use and end of life). Through insetting, companies can partner with key stakeholders in their value chains to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to climate change mitigation targets.

Insetting interventions tend to be based on the implementation of climate-smart practices at farm level and with local communities. Minimising the use of synthetic inputs, installing drip irrigation systems and renewable energy technologies, minimising tillage practices and maximising cover and intercropping are all examples of activities that could generate insetting credits. There are also co-benefits of these interventions; through the conservation and restoration of landscapes, they both build climate resilience and create stability in a company’s supply chain.

Photo credit: International Platform for Insetting (IPI). Description: What is insetting? This image was developed by the International Platform for Insetting (IPI), a business-led organisation which advocates for climate action at the source of global value.

What Is Better Cotton Doing About Carbon Insetting?

At Better Cotton, we are working on developing our own carbon insetting framework to promote and incentivise sustainable agricultural practices, with the support of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). Our belief is that insetting mechanisms can accelerate environmental and social progress, supporting smallholder livelihoods across our network.

Our aspiration is that our traceability system, due to launch later this year, will provide the backbone for this insetting mechanism. Once implemented, we aim to enable retailers and brands to find out which region the cotton they purchased was produced in, and to allow them to purchase credits that reward farmers and incentivise them to improve their field practices. To learn more about our work on traceability, head to this link.

We will be exploring carbon insetting further as part of a session on climate finance at the Better Cotton Conference 2023, taking place on 21 and 22 June in Amsterdam and online. One of the four key themes of the conference will be Climate Action, bringing together climate experts from a range of sectors to build on the discussions on climate action held at the Better Cotton Conference 2022. The Climate Action theme will be introduced by climate change and gender expert Nisha Onta, Regional Coordinator for Asia at WOCAN. To find out more about the Better Cotton Conference, head to this link.

Data & Impact Series: How We Use Complementary Methods to Evaluate Impact

Joe Morphet on May 3, 2023

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Morgan Ferrar Location: Şanlıurfa, Turkey. 2019 Description: Farm worker holding freshly picked cotton.

This is the second article in our Data & Impact series, where we explore Better Cotton’s data-driven approach to measuring and reporting impact. After looking at our new and improved reporting model, we are now shining a spotlight on how we evaluate impact.

We spoke to Eliane Augareils, Senior Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning Manager at Better Cotton, to find out more.

Photo credit: Better Cotton. Description: Eliane Augareils

Why is evaluation important for Better Cotton?

To ensure our programmes are making a difference and we are contributing substantially to more sustainable cotton production, we need to understand the environmental, social and economic impact of the Better Cotton Standard System. A key part of that is ensuring effective evaluation. Evaluation complements monitoring so that we can understand how and why changes do or don’t happen, and whether those changes can be attributed to the interventions of Better Cotton and its partners.

How does Better Cotton evaluate impact?

We use complementary research and evaluation methods, and work with independent organisations and researchers to assess field-level impacts. A diversity of approaches is required to effectively measure results and impact both at scale and in depth — as no single approach or methodology can meet all the needs for understanding the reach, efficiency, results, and ultimately impact, of a sustainability initiative.

How does the Better Cotton Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Programme work?

Our MEL Programme focuses on farm-level results, to measure what matters most according to our Theory of Change: continuous improvement of environmental, social and economic conditions in cotton cultivation.

Through our MEL Programme, we collect farm-level data over time to analyse the evolution of Better Cotton farmers in terms of practices, sustainable performance and results. Through third-party research, we aim to demonstrate that this evolution can be attributed fully or partially to Better Cotton’s interventions, and to quantify our contribution to positive change.

At Better Cotton, we are equally interested in demonstrating our contribution to change as we are in attributing that change to Better Cotton interventions.

Which complementary evaluation methods does Better Cotton use?

We work in parallel on three levels of monitoring & evaluation: programme-wide monitoring, sampled monitoring, and research.

Programme-wide monitoring

The first element of our MEL Programme is programme-wide monitoring, through which we capture information, self-reported by farmers, on Better Cotton’s reach. This information includes the total number of Better Cotton Farmers, the number of hectares under cultivation and the volumes of Better Cotton produced. By measuring this reach data, we can assess the progress that we are making towards reaching our vision of a world where all cotton farming is sustainable.

Sampled monitoring

We also collect data from a sample of Better Cotton Farmers to assess their socioeconomic and environmental performance. We use these farm-level results to see whether the Better Cotton Farmers are achieving better performance results after joining a Better Cotton programme.

Going forward, rather than reporting on results in one season as we have done in the past (comparing the results from Better Cotton Farmers and non-Better Cotton Farmers in one given season), we are now starting to report on the performance of Better Cotton Farmers over a multi-year timeframe. This approach, combined with enhanced contextual reporting, will bring improved transparency and strengthen the sector’s understanding of local cotton-growing conditions and national trends. It will also help us confirm whether Better Cotton Farmers are improving over an extended period. To read more about this, check out the previous blog in this series.

Research

Finally, Better Cotton commissions independent studies to collect and analyse data from Better Cotton Farmers, and sometimes from non-Better Cotton Farmers as well. These studies use a mix of quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Qualitative or mixed approaches allow us to hear in the farmers’ own words whether and how they feel that their participation in Better Cotton programmes is leading to positive change for them.

The comparison of Better Cotton Farmers’ and non-Better Cotton Farmers’ results at different points in time allows the researchers to identify and quantify the impact of Better Cotton’s interventions.

For example, between 2019 and 2022, Wageningen University conducted a study on Better Cotton’s impact in India. You can find more research papers on the ‘Demonstrating Results and Impact’ page of the Better Cotton website, under the ‘Independent Research and Evaluation’ section.

Depending on the needs and resources at hand, Better Cotton also commissions:

Outcome Evaluations: usually collecting baseline and endline data from Better Cotton Farmers, either for a specific project or across several Programme Partners.
Case Studies: using a smaller sample size to look at a specific topic or research question, using mostly qualitative or mixed approaches.

Lastly, we regularly provide farm-level (anonymised) data and give interviews to academic researchers or other research organisations that conduct independent research on sustainable cotton production.

How does Better Cotton ensure its evaluation is effective?

Next to our own internal policies and processes for monitoring and evaluation, the Better Cotton Standard System has also been independently evaluated against ISEAL’s Codes of Good Practice.

Being ISEAL Code Compliant, alongside other sector leaders such as Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance, means we are meeting rigorous international standards for monitoring and evaluation. We are committed to gradually improving the way we measure and report our progress and demonstrate our impact, investing in the reliability of the data we collect and in the robustness of our evaluation methods.

Find out more about our approach to Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning here.

Supporting Decent Work in Sanliurfa’s Cotton Communities

Joe Morphet on April 28, 2023

Towards the Elimination of Child Labour in Sanliurfa

Joe Morphet on April 28, 2023

Antonie Fountain, Managing Director of VOICE Network, Announced as Final Keynote Speaker for Better Cotton Conference 2023

Joe Morphet on April 27, 2023

Better Cotton today announces that Antonie Fountain, Co-Founder and Managing Director of the VOICE Network, will give a keynote speech introducing the theme of Livelihoods at the Better Cotton Conference 2023, taking place on 21 and 22 June in Amsterdam and online.

Antonie heads up the VOICE Network, a global association of civil society organisations working in sustainable cocoa. Tackling issues such as poverty, deforestation and child labour, the VOICE Network’s vision is a sustainable cocoa sector in which all stakeholders are able to earn a living income, under decent working conditions, where human rights are respected, and within a thriving and healthy environment.

A key spokesperson for civil society in cocoa, Antonie has been actively advocating a sustainable cocoa sector for almost two decades. He is the author of numerous publications on cocoa sustainability, and the chief editor of the Cocoa Barometer, a biennial overview of the sustainability challenges and opportunities in the cocoa sector.

Antonie is also the civil society advisor to the European Commission’s ‘Sustainable Cocoa Initiative’, the civil society representative to the United Nations’ International Cocoa Organisation Consultative Board, and sits on the Advisory Board of the Living Income Community of Practice.

Focusing on the incomes and well-being of smallholder farmers, Antonie will draw on his experiences in the cocoa sector to provide conference attendees with learnings that can be applied to a range of sectors, including cotton. He will explore key livelihoods challenges and discuss tried and tested approaches to finding solutions.

Livelihoods is one of four key themes at the Better Cotton Conference 2023, along with Climate Action, Regenerative Agriculture, and Data and Traceability. These four themes reflect key priorities from Better Cotton’s 2030 Strategy, and each will be introduced by a keynote speech from an internationally recognised sector thought leader.

We have previously announced the three other keynote speakers for the Better Cotton Conference 2023. Nisha Onta, Regional Coordinator for Asia at WOCAN, will open the conference with a speech introducing the theme of Climate Action, Maxine Bédat, Director of New Standard Institute, will introduce Data and Traceability, and Felipe Villela, Co-Founder of reNature, will give a keynote on the theme of Regenerative Agriculture.

Thank you to all our Better Cotton Conference sponsors! If you are interested in exploring our sponsorship packages, please contact [email protected]

To find out more about the Better Cotton Conference 2023 and sign up for tickets, head to this link. For more information, please contact [email protected]

‘Assess and Address’: Better Cotton’s Revised Approach on Decent Work

Joe Morphet on April 26, 2023

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Morgan Ferrar. Location: Ratane village, Mecuburi District, Nampula Province. 2019. Description: Cotton plant

By Amanda Noakes, Senior Global Decent Work and Human Rights Coordinator at Better Cotton

Underpinning everything we do at Better Cotton is the recognition that Better Cotton is only ‘better’ if it improves the wellbeing of farmers and their communities. That’s why ‘Decent Work’ – productive work that offers social protection, equal opportunities, freedom, security and human dignity – is a central focus of our programme, and the most substantially strengthened principle in our newly revised farm-level standard.

‘Assess and Address’ Criteria in Better Cotton’s New Decent Work Principle

Highlighting the importance of this area for Better Cotton and its growing recognition in the wider legislative landscape, our updated criteria on Decent Work reflects our ambitious new goals to drive even more positive change for farming households, workers and communities. Within the framework of our new Decent Work principle, we are transitioning away from a traditional zero-tolerance model – adopted by many certifications worldwide – and towards an ‘assess and address’ approach, which treats producers and farming communities as partners in improving practices and protection systems.

The ‘assess and address’ framework developed and rolled out by Rainforest Alliance, in particular, has served as a key reference for Better Cotton. At its core, ‘assess and address’ moves away from cut-and-run, punitive measures for certificate-holders who are not in compliance with criteria, which has historically eroded trust among stakeholders and driven key issues like child labour underground.

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Morgan Ferrar. Location: Ratane village, Mozambique, 2019. Description: Amelia Sidumo (Better Cotton Staff) with teachers and children at Ratane Elementary School and SANAM Staff, talking to children and their parents about the risks of working at their age.

Instead, it aims to work together with producers and communities to tackle the root causes of human and labour rights challenges, holistically and collaboratively. It also puts a greater emphasis on supporting and investing in field-level systems and stakeholder collaboration to prevent, mitigate, identify and address issues, so that responsibility and accountability are locally owned and shared. In a nutshell, the approach aims to support better identification and mitigation of risks, as well as improved case management capabilities. It will also bring greater farm-level emphasis on prevention and protection, driven by genuine commitment, communication and continuous monitoring.

Better Cotton’s revised Principles and Criteria (P&C), coming into effect in 2024, have the most comprehensive and nuanced set of labour indicators yet. One of the primary new indicators that has embodied the ‘assess and address’ approach is a requirement on participatory development and roll-out of effective labour monitoring and grievance handling systems at producer level. This will include the establishment of clear referral and remediation procedures in case of identification of rights violations.

In addition to this, greater emphasis on building rights awareness of farm workers, but also producers (smallholders in particular), in our revised Standard is also a key step forward.

The Potential Challenges and Limitations of ‘Assess and Address’

At Better Cotton, we recognise that the ‘assess and address’ approach is still relatively new, and as with any new approach, will need to be further tested and refined over the coming years. It is also an approach that will increasingly demand support from our valued members and partners, through field-level investment and expansion of knowledge partnerships with expert organisations specialising in human rights.

We hope to work together with our members, partners and other key stakeholders to test innovative systems and approaches to some of the most endemic and persistent challenges in the cotton sector today. Multi-stakeholder dialogue around sourcing, pricing, supply chain and purchasing practices all also have a critical role to play in moving the sector in a more equitable direction. As human rights due diligence legislation continues to evolve globally, such initiatives will be fundamental to ensure our common vision of more sustainable and responsible supply chains is met. We invite all to join us on this journey.

Discover the new Better Cotton Principles and Criteria

See how Better Cotton promotes Decent Work

Better Cotton Announces myBetterCotton, New Member Portal Launching in 2023

Joe Morphet on April 26, 2023

Better Cotton today announces that it will be launching myBetterCotton, a new portal for Better Cotton Members, later this year. Access to the portal will be granted to Members in a phased rollout, starting mid-2023 and continuing throughout the rest of the year.

The myBetterCotton portal has been created in order to improve the Better Cotton membership experience, taking into account the responses from our 2022 Member Feedback Survey. The new portal will provide a platform for Members to connect, collaborate and network, whilst making it easier for them to engage with Better Cotton.

The myBetterCotton portal is built around four key areas:

‘My Membership’ – empowering Members to take control of their organisation’s information and keep it updated, this section will map out the onboarding process and allow Members to review and manage open or pending actions.
‘My Community’ – a space for Members to engage, collaborate and network online. Direct chat and discussion group features will offer Members the opportunity to share opinions, discuss news and talk about their successes and challenges with one another. Members will also be able to view events and webinars and register to attend.
‘My Sourcing’ – where Retailer and Brand Members can explore sourcing guidance, submit their cotton consumption and review their goals, and keep up to date with their progress towards meeting targets.
‘My Claims’ – allowing Members to explore claims guidance and facilitate submissions of marketing and communications materials for review. Members will be able to review any claims they submitted previously.

myBetterCotton is our new and exciting meeting place for Members to network and learn more about Better Cotton. Our vision is that it will help newcomers to Better Cotton blossom into seasoned Members who promote Better Cotton and believe in our mission to improve farmer livelihoods and the environment. We will share regular updates and moderate your insightful discussions and look forward to welcoming you online over the course of 2023.

Members will receive more information about myBetterCotton, including when they can expect to receive access to the portal, by email in the coming months.

Introducing the Better Cotton Chain of Custody Standard: Register for Upcoming Webinar

Joe Morphet on April 25, 2023

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Baran Vardar. Harran, Turkey 2022. Cotton field.

Better Cotton is today announcing that on 10 May we will host a webinar to celebrate our next step towards making tracing physical Better Cotton a reality. On that date, we will publish a revised version of the Better Cotton Chain of Custody Guidelines, renamed as the Chain of Custody Standard.

As defined by ISEAL, a chain of custody is the ‘custodial sequence that occurs as ownership or control of the material supply is transferred from one custodian to another in the supply chain’. From the farmers who grow Better Cotton to the companies that source it, the Better Cotton Chain of Custody (CoC) is the documentation and evidence of Better Cotton as it moves through the supply chain.

Up until now, our CoC Guidelines allowed two chain of custody models: product segregation between the farm and gin, and mass balance beyond the gin (read more about these models here). The new CoC Standard will continue to offer this combination, but also introduce the opportunity to implement physical chain of custody models across the whole supply chain. This will make it possible for our Members to source physical Better Cotton alongside mass balance.

Better Cotton has been revising its Chain of Custody Guidelines, the key framework which connects demand with the supply of Better Cotton, since July 2021. As part of the revision of the Guidelines, an extensive research and consultation process has taken place, involving Better Cotton stakeholder groups as well as external experts in the field. This included surveying over 1,500 Better Cotton suppliers, commissioning two independent research studies, convening an industry task force with Member Suppliers and Retailers and Brands, and multiple stakeholder workshops.

The revision was incentivised by the increased demand for tracing physical Better Cotton, which requires the introduction of physical chain of custody models alongside mass balance. The new CoC Standard will introduce physical segregation and controlled blending as additional chain of custody models, creating the opportunity for our members to trace physical Better Cotton whilst also continuing to use the mass balance model.

The Chain of Custody Standard v 1.0 will be introduced by a webinar to provide further information on key updates and changes to the previous CoC Guidelines. The webinar will be hosted on 10 May 2023 and take place in two sessions to accommodate different time zones. The CoC Standard document will be published on the same date on our website.

To find out more, we encourage all Better Cotton Members and stakeholders to register for the webinar on 10 May using one of the following links*:

• Session 1: 08:00 – 09:00 (UTC+1) Registration link
• Session 2: 15:00 – 16:00 (UTC+1) Registration link

*Please note that both sessions include the same content, so there is no need to attend both.

Better Cotton Impact Targets: Q&A with Rajan Bhopal, International Project Manager at Pesticide Action Network UK

Joe Morphet on April 24, 2023

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Vibhor Yadav Location: Kodinar, Gujarat, India. 2019. Description: Better Cotton Farmer Vala Gopalbhai Nathabha wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) whilst applying pesticides.

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Altitude Meetings. Location: Malmö, Sweden. Description: Rajan Bhopal speaking at the Better Cotton Conference 2022.

Better Cotton’s new 2030 Impact Targets have been informed by consultations with both internal and external experts to help us get to the heart of each matter and accelerate progress at the field level.

To better understand the cotton sector’s relationship with pesticides, and why important changes are required, we spoke with Rajan Bhopal, International Project Manager at Pesticide Action Network (PAN) UK.

Better Cotton has partners around the world. How important will the extensive nature of this network be to improving the cotton sector’s use of pesticides across key regions?  

Globally we have already exceeded the planetary boundary for chemical pollution, each kilogram of pesticide sprayed only adds further to the global ecological crisis. The Better Cotton mission of improving the sustainability of all cotton farming worldwide has led to the organisation operating in countries where cotton is not grown sustainably. This is where Better Cotton can support farmers to adopt cotton production practices that promote biodiversity and healthy, sustainable livelihoods, and have real impact on reducing the harms of pesticides.

A global effort is needed to transition towards responsible forms of pest management and reduce the harms that pesticide use can cause. The apparel and textile sector needs to move together with cotton producers by providing strong demand and funding research, development and training where required. As a member of Better Cotton, we hope to support this global network, which provides opportunities to share practices and approaches within countries and across regions.

Across the cotton sector, how aware are farmers of the environmental and human risks linked to poor pesticide management and how big of an endeavour is providing education and training at scale? 

Smallholder farmers and workers suffer symptoms ranging from chemical burns to migraines, nausea and vomiting from pesticide exposure and so are acutely aware of the immediate impacts on their own health – though they are usually unaware of the long-term health implications of pesticide exposure. However, most farmers do not believe they have a choice.

Farmers we speak to can both lack knowledge or confidence in alternative pest management approaches. This is why capacity strengthening, research and on-farm demonstrations of responsible pest management is needed urgently.

Increasing awareness of harms is not the only challenge. To promote responsible practices, the sector needs to work with farmers and researchers to trial and test alternatives, to establish the demonstration of proven alternatives in fields that are easily accessible to all farmers and increase the value we assign to the tens of thousands of vital extension agents who provide critical advice and support to farmers.

For cotton farmers, what will be the most notable benefits of reducing or more efficiently using pesticides? 

Reduced costs, improved health and ecosystem resilience. Half of all farmers and workers are affected by pesticide poisoning every year. This can be stopped by eliminating Highly Hazardous Pesticides and reducing pesticide use through agroecological methods, leading to healthy communities and a safe working environment. For many farmers, production costs can be reduced – sometimes massively. In our work with smallholder farmers those who implement agroecological cotton production reduce cost by 70% without reducing their yield, leading to huge improvements in profit. From smallholdings to megafarms, a reduction in the use of pesticides will directly improve the health of the agroecosystem, which provides natural control of cotton pests.

With the current rate of climate change, how important is it that cotton farmers adopt best practices on pesticide use in a timely manner? 

Pesticides are driving climate change directly and are likely to account for between 7-10% of Better Cotton’s greenhouse gas emissions. Most synthetic pesticides are made from fossil fuels and are very energy intensive to produce – on average it takes 10 times more energy to produce a kilogram of pesticide than the same amount of nitrogen fertiliser due to the greater quantities of fertiliser applied.

With climate change, pests are becoming harder to control, and pests may emerge in new areas. Farmers who are dependent on pesticides will find costs increasing as they battle pests without the help of beneficial organisms or other integrated pest management tools. Farmers depending on a single annual crop for cash income will have limited resilience in the face of extreme weather events as high production costs increase vulnerability to heavy economic losses in a low yielding year.

Globally, more pest control is provided by nature than by pesticides. Farming with nature, not against it through adopting best practice will help farmers to reduce pesticide use and improve their resilience to the extreme conditions brought by climate change.

To find out more about Better Cotton’s Impact Targets, follow this link.

Felipe Villela, Founder of reNature, Announced as a Keynote Speaker for Better Cotton Conference 2023

Joe Morphet on April 20, 2023

Better Cotton today announces that Felipe Villela, Co-Founder of reNature, will give a keynote speech introducing the theme of Regenerative Agriculture at the Better Cotton Conference 2023, taking place in Amsterdam and online on 21 and 22 June.

A regenerative agribusiness entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in the sector, Felipe founded reNature in 2018 with his business partner Marco de Boer. reNature is a Dutch organisation that utilises regenerative agriculture to fight today’s most pressing challenges, including climate change, poverty, biodiversity loss, and food insecurity. Its mission is to regenerate 100 million hectares of farming land by 2035, whilst supporting 10 million farmers in this transition, representing 2% of total farmland & farmers across the globe.

reNature delivers technical assistance, monitoring and evaluation, and stakeholder engagement to farmers’ cooperatives, private companies and NGOs seeking a transition towards regenerative agriculture at scale. Its goal is to ensure access to high-quality and healthy food for the growing global population while regenerating land.

Born in Brazil, Felipe is also Strategic Advisor at the United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) and a Lead Author at the UN Environment Programme’s Global Environment Outlook for Business, contributing to Brief 3 on the role of business in transforming our food systems. A TEDx speaker, he was featured in Forbes Under 30 in 2020, and sits on the Regenerative Advisory Board of Mãe Terra. Felipe is passionate about spreading the knowledge and efficiency of regenerative agriculture within businesses, in order to foster a new nature-inclusive economical model.

Regenerative agriculture, a term which refers to practices that promote soil health and restore organic carbon in soil, is one of four key themes at the Better Cotton Conference 2023, along with Climate Action, Livelihoods, and Data and Traceability. These four themes all reflect key priorities from Better Cotton’s 2030 Strategy, and each will be introduced by a keynote speech from an internationally recognised sector expert.

We have already announced that Nisha Onta, Regional Coordinator for Asia at WOCAN, will open the conference with a keynote speech introducing the theme of Climate Action, whilst Maxine Bédat, Director of New Standard Institute, will introduce Data and Traceability. Our final keynote speaker, as well as further details on the conference themes and sessions, will be announced in the coming weeks and months.

To find out more about the Better Cotton Conference 2023 and sign up for tickets, head to this link. For more information, please contact [email protected]

Better Cotton Updates Field-Level Principles and Criteria

Joe Morphet on April 20, 2023

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Khaula Jamil Location: Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab, Pakistan. 2019. Description: Ruksana Kausar in her cotton fields where she and her husband (also a Better Cotton farmer) work together to harvest cotton.

Better Cotton has revised its Principles & Criteria (P&C) to ensure it remains an effective tool to drive continuous improvement and deliver sustainability impact at field-level.

The P&C define the organisation’s approach to more sustainable cotton production and establish the requirements farmers must comply with to attain a licence and sell their cotton as ‘Better Cotton’. At present, more than two million farmers worldwide – from large to smallholder operations – hold a licence.

The revised Principles cover Management, Natural Resources, Crop Protection, Fibre Quality, Decent Work, and Smallholder Livelihoods, as well as the two cross-cutting priorities of Gender Equality and Climate Change.

The latest revision was finalised in February following extensive consultations to ensure it best reflects the organisation’s latest focus areas, including its 2030 Strategy, whilst aligning with global trends towards more sustainable agricultural value chains and market regulations. Refined in compliance with the codes of good practice from ISEAL, a leading authority on sustainability standards, Version 3.0 (v.3.0) will become effective for licensing starting in the 2024/25 season.

In practice, the revised P&C will embrace a farmer-centric approach and serve as a more locally relevant standard that addresses the environmental, social and economic matters most pertinent to cotton production today. It has been reframed to plug key gaps and remove duplicative requirements, learning from previous iterations and the experiences of users.

To accelerate environmental improvements, P&C revisions will ensure the responsible use, conservation and enhancement of natural resources by championing regenerative agricultural practices, more sustainable crop protection methods and effective water use.

From a social standpoint, the revised standard will place stronger onus on driving impact and promoting wellbeing in farming communities, supported by more robust requirements surrounding Decent Work and Gender Equality, in addition to the inclusion of a new principle: Smallholder Livelihoods.

What’s more, a new subsection on climate change will offer guidance for farmers on how to best to adapt to field-level challenges and highlight the best available, region-specific measures.

After an 18-month review process, we’re confident that the revised principles will help cotton growing communities continue to deliver improvements at field-level. With a practice-oriented focus, our standard strengthens requirements across both environmental and social topics, and even goes further to encompass farmer livelihoods for the first time. We’re grateful to the many stakeholders that supported this latest revision, it’s with their support that we can ensure the P&C is effective across our industry.

I experienced the review process of the Decent Work & Gender working group as a highly participatory and constructive process with ample space to include insights and experiences from different kinds of stakeholders. This has led to revised principles that are not only clear, related to the context and practical but also in line with international standards and principles. As such, they will be a great support to cotton growers to identify and address labour and gender issues and improve working conditions and livelihood of the people involved in cotton production in a sustainable way.

To learn more about the Principles and Criteria v.3.0 and read the new farm-level standard, head to this link.

Better Cotton Trials Innovative Traceability Solutions in India

Joe Morphet on April 18, 2023

Digital and physical traceability solutions from Retraced, TextileGenesis, Haelixa, and Tailorlux are currently being tested to determine the best way to establish greater transparency across cotton supply chains

Photo Credit: Better Cotton/Vibhor Yadav Location: Kodinar, Gujarat, India. 2019. Description: Hands picking cotton.

Better Cotton is piloting innovative traceability technologies from Retraced, TextileGenesis, Haelixa and Tailorlux within India’s cotton supply chains to determine the best way to boost transparency across cotton supply chains.

Conducted in collaboration with companies including C&A, Marks & Spencer, Target, and Walmart, the project will see each technology track cotton as it moves throughout the supplier networks of participating brands and retailers.

This will build on Better Cotton’s ongoing work to revise its Chain of Custody (CoC) model and revolutionise traceability across complex cotton supply chains. In practice, it will help establish greater visibility of the journey cotton takes from field to fashion and provide an opportunity to test advanced solutions ahead of Better Cotton offering traceability at a limited scale this year.

Both digital and physical traceability solutions are being deployed in discrete cotton supply chains to assess their performance, with the results set to inform the scaled direction of Better Cotton’s traceability programme. Digital traceability is being provided by leading platforms, Retraced and TextileGenesis. Better Cotton is also trialling two additive tracers, Haelixa and Tailorlux, before determining the potential of each solution.

There are over one million Better Cotton farmers in India, and it is one of the largest producers of Better Cotton globally. However, domestic supply chains are amongst the most complex in the world and are far more fragmented than in other regions. Until now, it has been difficult to get a holistic view of traceability in the supply chain. Better Cotton’s new traceability system will need to align and eventually go beyond the capabilities of existing traceability solutions to provide full end-to-end visibility.

With physical traceability, Better Cotton will be able to verify the provenance of certified materials with greater accuracy. This pilot programme will expand upon Better Cotton’s Chain of Custody framework that incorporates the concept of “mass balance” – a widely-used volume-tracking system. Mass balance allows Better Cotton to be substituted or mixed with conventional cotton by traders or spinners along the supply chain while ensuring that the amount of Better Cotton sold never exceeds the amount of Better Cotton produced. The new traceability framework will allow greater flexibility and visibility of the physical flow of cotton through supply chains as our network grows.

After consulting with our members across the supply chain and getting to grips with their needs and pain points, we’ve taken those learnings and tested solutions in India to bring traceable Better Cotton to life. What we’ve found is helping us to prepare to offer a scalable new system to our members as early as this year. Not only will this benefit our members, but it will benefit farmers who implement sustainable agricultural practices by ensuring they can continue to access increasingly regulated markets.

At M&S, we source 100% of the cotton for our clothing from more responsible sources, however, across the industry the global supply chain remains particularly complex. Since 2021, we have been proud partners working with Better Cotton to improve cotton farming globally. We’re delighted to be building on our partnership and trialling innovative new traceability solutions in India’s cotton supply chains, in order to revolutionise the wider industry.

Better Cotton’s India traceability pilot activities are supported in part by the Verité STREAMS project, a traceability project funded by the U.S. Department of Labor under cooperative agreement number IL-35805.