Cordova, U.S.: In today’s market, consumers and brands alike are increasingly demanding transparency and accountability in supply chains. Traceability, the ability to track a product’s journey from origin to consumer, is crucial for verifying sustainability claims, ensuring responsible sourcing, and building trust. By providing verifiable data on a product’s origin and production process, traceability empowers informed decision-making and promotes responsible practices.
The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol and Supima are pleased to announce a collaboration to enhance cotton supply chain traceability and provide brands and retailers with unprecedented access to farm-level data. This integration leverages the strengths of both organizations, building upon the USDA’s permanent bale identification system and TextileGenesis’s traceability platform.
This collaboration allows brand and retail members to track Supima’s three distinct fibers – SUPIMA, Protocol Supima, and Organic Supima – into their finished products under the Supima AQRe Project. Members can also claim Protocol Consumption Units (PCCUs) in the same manner as under the Trust Protocol program.
The integrated system offers two distinct paths for yarn mills purchasing American Pima cotton fiber, providing flexibility and transparency in tracking cotton consumption. Regardless of the path chosen, brand members will gain visibility into tracked shipments, be assigned PCCUs, and receive associated environmental metrics reflecting the volume of eligible fiber consumed.
