How an Outcomes-Based Approach is Impacting Cotton Livelihoods in Gujarat State

Then there was this incubation at Gujarat University Startup & Entrepreneurship Council (GUSEC). Was it part of the project above, or was it something different altogether?
Edward Hill: We weren’t incubated at GUSEC but only worked from there as they provided affordable space for start-ups. Some of our early team was also hired from graduating students who studied at Gujarat University.

Three big brands that have been associated with Materra in the last one year or less are Mango, H&M and Bestseller. Could you tell us more about each of these relationships?
Edward Hill: We announced our first big multi-year offtake agreement and brand partnership with Mango with products using our regenerative cotton set to launch in 2024. It’s been a fruitful experience working with their very involved team.

With H&M Lab we have a second hydroponic pilot installed in 2022 to further accelerate the R&D towards a commercially viable system and make hydroponic cotton available for H&M Group brands.

H&M Group and Invest FWD (BESTSELLER Group) co-led our seed round—these relationships are independent of brand alignment.

You work primarily in Gujarat, one of the most arid regions of India. How have you approached cotton farming here since the beginning? What was the kind of homework that you did? What's the typical profile of the average farmer who works with you?
Edward Hill: We landed in Gujarat with ground support from Arvind Mill, one of our first piloting partners as they have a large denim mill based in Ahmedabad. India is the largest producer of cotton in the world and Gujarat is the highest-producing state in India. However, it is a highly arid region relying mainly on irrigation.

Over the last three years, we have piloted different approaches to water stewardship from installing water recharge systems to piloting drip irrigation and exploring methods to increase soil covering to prevent evaporation.

There is not one single solution that fits all, with farmers' situations rapidly changing across the state. For example, we work with one community that is located in a coastal region where saline water is a large challenge for agriculture. We also work with another community deep inland where their water table has dropped dramatically over the last 20 years.

How are you optimally using water? Could you give us an idea? How much is rain-fed, and how much is irrigated? Have you calculated your water footprint? Could you tell us more?
Edward Hill: As Materra is a design and technology company we are focusing specifically on irrigated regions, exploring how novel applications of technology can increase water stewardship and decrease water footprints.

In 2023, we developed a farmer support application called CoFarm. The app allows us to provide bespoke advisory services to farmers to balance profit against impact. It also facilitates data collection of farmers' practices and operations unlocking individual farmers’ green (rainwater) and blue (surface and groundwater) water footprint calculations.

Soil water absorption, soil water infiltration rate and soil cover are key parameters our team established to help reduce the water footprint.  We actively support farmers with practices that can increase these metrics, increasing water use efficiency via our field teams and through our advisory on CoFarm. We also provide detailed advisory on when to apply irrigation for maximum benefit in balance with changing weather conditions.

Our hydroponic system is very water-efficient and it can run on a circular water and nutrient system.

After water comes land use. Anything regenerative needs to look not just at the patch of land in isolation, but also at the local landscape/ecosystem itself. How have you been able to work that out in Gujarat? What about fertilisers and pesticides?
Edward Hill: Gujarat has traditionally been part of the important cotton-growing region in India but most cotton comes from scattered smallholder farms. Aggregating the practices of these farms has no doubt been a difficult job but is a challenge we have taken on. 

An important thing to note in regenerative agriculture is that it’s not a one-fits-all system but is entirely place-based and context and community-specific. 

We describe regenerative outcomes at Materra via three pillars: restoring biodiversity, reducing resource usage and raising farmer livelihoods. With respect to chemical fertilisers and pesticides, we provide capacity building on bio-based alternatives that can be produced by farmers and a roadmap to transition away from chemical inputs.

We provide extensive in-field agronomy support with the help of our in-house team of agronomists, soil scientists, implementation managers and field execs. This includes in-field demonstrations and workshops in creating botanical pesticides, for example. We are also working on providing AI support for this specific area (low-impact, high-efficiency, and achieving good profitability in nutrient and pest management) through our digital app Co: Farm, which already provides text and video tutorials on the same, along with the ability to directly chat with our implementation team at any time.

You chose extra long staple (ELS) cotton. Please tell us why. Have you seen any change in the demand for ELS, be it either demand from particular geographies, or maybe demand from specific kinds of brands/manufacturers?
Edward Hill: ELS cotton is no longer commercially produced in India—they are currently importing roughly 30% US Supima production, while also importing large volumes of Pima and Giza cotton. These are used in fine jersey products and shirts but also in homeware such as towels and bedsheets. Being able to produce ELS cotton hydroponically, directly near large Indian vertical textile mills will help further reduce the environmental impact of cotton connected to transport.

The subject of regenerative agriculture is not yet settled science. There are still many definitions/versions. But of course, everyone agrees about the fundamental tenets. How do you approach the subject? And do you think you will need to expand on your idea in the future?
Edward Hill: There is no one defined standard on what regenerative agriculture is and at Materra, our approach to regenerative agriculture is based on three principles and an outcomes-based approach:

• Reducing resource use: This includes training farmers to produce their own bio-based inputs, promoting Integrated Crop Management and Integrated Pest Management to reduce reliance on chemical inputs, improving water stewardship, increasing soil health, crop rotation and green manuring.
• Restoring biodiversity: This includes helping living ecosystems flourish with better soil management, increasing crop diversity through crop rotations, intercropping, planting local species, creating habitats for beneficial insects, planting native tree species with dwindling populations, installing bird perches and water bowls.
• Raising farmer livelihoods: This includes co-designing with farmers, increasing farmer profits, incorporating local knowledge and building resilience in the field. As a farmers-first organisation, this is really important and plays a major role when designing legal structures and long-term partnerships with brands. Along with digital and in-person agronomy support, we provide outcomes-based financial incentives on successful progression towards regenerative goals, along with guaranteed premiums.

We’ve been part of the working group for Textile Exchange’s Regenerative Agriculture Outcomes Framework. Our regenerative principles draw upon various shared disciplines, including agroecology, natural farming, soil conservation and integrated pest management with the principle aim of restoring and reviving as compared to a conventionally extractive system. Our programme has been designed with local stakeholders and communities along with agronomy experts and academics, incorporating indigenous knowledge. 

As we plan to expand 3x in 2024, we’ve also just hired our new Head of Regenerative Agriculture, Mari Stuart, who has extensive experience in the field as a regenerative designer and carbon farm planner, to lead the strategy of our regenerative programme including the theory of change that will underpin our programme expansion. We aim to release more thought leadership on this subject in the coming months; keep an eye out on our social channels.