Not just good in the sense that they look well and feel nice, but good in the sense that nobody gets hurt or exploited making them, and the environment doesn’t suffer terribly in the process. This is not a pipedream. It can be done. It has been done. We are doing it.
Picture a young couple from Thessaly, Greece, working hard to modernise the old cotton farm that’s been in the family for generations. They are still learning, of course, but with their entire community backing them up, they can make big changes.
Sustainability, that ever-present corporate buzzword, gets translated into real action here. Soil health is monitored and protected through appropriate farming and irrigation practices. Biodiversity—if you don’t mind another buzzword—is protected, too. Local wildlife populations thrive if you just cover the basics. Properly dispose of chemicals. Preserve natural habitats. Keep some areas wild.
Modern technology makes a difference. Our young couple can choose from modern cotton seed varieties well-adapted to the local climate — such as FiberMax seed known for fantastic fibre of excellent strength, high gin turnout, length and micronaire even when growing conditions are less than favourable. This in turn creates excellent spinning characteristics further down the value chain and quality yarn means reducing waste during manufacturing. Sustainability is all about doing more with less therefore if your germplasm is of excellent quality then your cotton production takes a leap forward. Our farmers in the CSF programme receive a premium from the ginners for their excellent cotton yields.
Responsible cotton production means real support for the local communities. It’s all about working together to build tools and skills to focus on farming the best cotton possible. For our young couple, it could be anything from training in new farming technologies to participation in regenerative carbon farming pilot programmes.
And that’s just extra. The core of social responsibility is making sure that cotton-producing farms are economically viable and competitive on local markets. This is how you support communities and help build farms that last not just decades, but generations.
After the harvest, the cotton is processed by ginners and spinners into quality cotton thread. With the focus on responsibility and quality, it makes sense to choose local companies, with proud histories of dedicated craftsmanship. CSF certification is a guarantee of quality, but also of a safety -first approach in processing.
A lot goes into making cotton that farmers can be proud to produce, textile industry workers can be proud to process, and customers everywhere can be proud to wear.
We wanted cotton clothes that are good, so we are working on a block chain process where quality, sustainability and responsibility are incentivised (and verified) at every step in the process.
We have created a label that really means something.
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