Cotton Australia supports Kmart Australia's initiative

29 Oct '17

2 min read

Courtesy: cotton Australia

The Australian cotton industry’s peak grower body, Cotton Australia, has come out in support of Kmart Australia’s new initiative to source 100 per cent “more sustainable cotton” by 2020. Kmart’s definition of ‘more sustainable’ includes Better Cotton Initiative cotton (BCI), myBMP-certified Australian-grown cotton, and organic and recycled cotton.

“Kmart has been sourcing Australian cotton into its clothing and homewares ranges for a number of years, and we’re proud to be a supplier of sustainable, ethically grown cotton,” says Cotton Australia CEO, Adam Kay. “Almost 20 per cent of this year’s crop was grown under the fully certified myBMP (Best Management Practices) programme, and we’re active members of the Better Cotton Initiative, supplying the world market since 2014.”

“Cotton Australia has been working with brands and manufacturers for a number of years to position Australian cotton as a raw material of choice based on our global leadership in sustainable cotton production. It’s encouraging to see an iconic Australian retailer set such a bold target, one that our farmers can help Kmart to meet,” Kay said.

“Public targets like this send a strong signal to our farmers that retailers and brands are increasingly demanding cotton grown with the greatest care for the natural environment, workers rights and safety. This is great news for our growers who can provide fully-certified sustainable cotton, traceable back to the farm,” Kay added.

“While the base-line sustainability benchmark for Australian cotton is already very high by global standards, these signals drive participation in our on-farm programmes and encourage more farmers to move to full certification. The personal effort and investment, over many decades, at an individual farm level cannot be underestimated and it is heartening to see Kmart support sustainable cotton production globally. We look forward to continue working with Kmart to ensure sustainable Australian cotton is available to Australian consumers for years to come,” Kay said. (SV)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

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