Reaching millions of cotton farmers and supporting them to farm in ways that protect and restore the environment requires strong partnerships and collaboration at every level.
Working with our Strategic Partners – partners who either implement the Better Cotton programme in their country or run equivalent national sustainable cotton programmes – we use our joint reach, resources and experience to make more rapid progress and create a positive impact on a larger scale.
Who are Better Cotton’s Strategic Partners and what do they do?
Strategic Partners join with Better Cotton to champion and embed sustainability in cotton production. Partners can be national or regional producer organisations, governments or governmental bodies supporting agriculture, or initiatives that grow, promote and sell Better Cotton. We have two types of Strategic Partners.
Firstly, we have Strategic Partners who oversee the Better Cotton Standard System and programme in a country, managing our Programme Partners, who deliver training and support to farmers on the ground. These are:
Turkey
Iyi Pamuk Uygulamaları Derneği – IPUD (the Good Cotton Practices Association) is responsible for the implementation of Better Cotton Standard System and the production of Better Cotton in Turkey.
Mozambique
The Mozambique government’s Cotton Institute of Mozambique is making the Better Cotton Principles and Criteria the recommended way to grow cotton in the country.
Secondly, we work with Strategic Partners in benchmarked countries. What does this mean? Where countries already have sustainable cotton programmes in place, it makes sense for us to work with the people who manage these programmes to champion sustainability together. To do this, we go through a careful process of comparing our standards to make sure we share the same aims and ideals. When we agree that their sustainable cotton standard is officially equivalent to the Better Cotton Standard System in their country, we can make more rapid progress towards transforming cotton farming in an efficient and consistent way.
Better Cotton has recognised five other cotton sustainability standards as equivalent to the Better Cotton Standard. This means cotton farmers fulfilling these standards can also opt to sell their cotton as Better Cotton. These are:
Australia
My Best Management Practices (myBMP), managed by Cotton Australia, is the Australian cotton industry’s voluntary farm and environmental management programme for growers.
Brazil
The Responsible Brazilian Cotton programme (ABR), managed by the Associação Brasileira dos Produtores de Algodão (ABRAPA), brings farmers together in favour of a more sustainable cotton production.
Greece
Agro-2 Standard, managed by the Hellenic Agricultural Organization – Demeter, Inter-Branch Organization of Greek Cotton, promotes integrated management of agricultural holdings to reduce inputs and achieve the best possible financial outcome for farmers.
Israel
Israel Cotton Production Standard System, managed by the Israel Cotton Production and Marketing Board (ICB), coordinates relations between farmers, the cotton supply chain, and research and development institutions.
Spain
Better Cotton has forged partnerships with the Regional Government of Andalucia and Espalgodon, a coalition of three Spanish agricultural organisations representing all cotton farmers in the country, to kickstart the production of Better Cotton-equivalent cotton in Spain.
Become a Strategic Partner
If you are interested in becoming a Strategic Partner, please contact the Better Cotton programme team for more information.
