Inside CottonConnect’s Push for Traceability and Sustainability in Global Cotton

What are the most pressing issues that farmers are facing, beyond environmental concerns? Important: how does this vary across geographies?
Alison Ward: The challenges cotton farmers face varies widely across countries and are influenced by both global and local economies, policies, and infrastructure. In India, for example, smallholder farmers can face debt, limited access to modern technology, and vulnerability to price swings. In all geographies, rising climate challenges—such as unpredictable rainfall and prolonged droughts—are major concerns. In our programme areas in China, key challenges include an aging farming population, geographic variability, rising production costs, and in Egypt, limited availability of high-quality seeds and restricted access to reliable, affordable finance are frequently cited. In Türkiye, farmers contend with climate unpredictability, inconsistent support policies, and volatile input costs. Each region’s unique mix of pressures shapes the specific hardships cotton growers face.

CottonConnect partners with many big brands. How do you ensure these collaborations are genuinely impactful and not just CSR checkboxes?
Alison Ward: We work with various stakeholders across the supply chain, be it farmers, ginners, spinners or brands. We facilitate discussions and create transformational partnerships. The base for all our programmes is a strong measurement and evaluation framework so we can measure the impact for farmers. This is then supported by independent verification. With the new European legislation on ethical and environmental claims these frameworks are becoming increasingly important. 

We have been working with many of our brand partners for over 10 years and as a result are beginning to see systemic shifts in these supply chains. In our most recent Impact Report, we can see the year-on-year impact of these programmes. Key achievements from 2023-24 for the REEL Cotton Programme include:

• 4% reduction in chemical pesticide use
• 5% decrease in chemical fertiliser application
• 9% reduction in water usage

These improvements contribute to protecting environmental ecosystems. The resulting reduction in input costs, combined with improved yields, can also increase income for cotton farmers.

Have you faced any ethical dilemmas when working with large corporations that might have conflicting agendas? How did you navigate those?
Alison Ward: This is a critical question for mission-driven organisations like CottonConnect, which aim to create real impact in sustainability and farmer livelihoods. Ensuring alignment with genuinely committed brands is essential to preserving integrity, and maintaining trust with stakeholders, especially farmers and field partners.

We are fortunate to work with companies where business ethics are central to their ethos and governance. We see our work in driving transparency leads to greater business accountability; and our work in human rights leads to fairer supply chains. 10 years ago the cotton supply chain was opaque and we set the challenge to map each step of the supply chain and to improve traceability between each step. Now, we have traced the volume equivalent of over half million t-shirts.

There’s increasing scrutiny around “greenwashing.” How does CottonConnect ensure the integrity and transparency of its sustainability claims?
Alison Ward: Understanding where cotton comes from is extremely complex as it goes through multiple processes and can be traded many times and across borders. According to a study from the United Nations Economic Commission, more than two-thirds of clothing companies find the fragmentation and complexity of the global business network a key obstacle to ensuring sustainability.

CottonConnect has worked extensively across the sector to understand the challenges of textile supply chains and what is needed to achieve digital traceability that enables retailers to track a garment back to its earliest stages.

We have built a traceability platform, TraceBale, to provide updates on everything from the availability of seed cotton and lint to the profiles of the processors who have handled the material throughout the chain. This visibility means brands can provide honest assurance to consumers and use facts to substantiate marketing claims.

With near real-time data capture and farm group-level traceability now available, we can strengthen supply chain resilience and drive greater accountability within the textile sector.

‘Regenerative agriculture’ has become a buzzword. Is regenerative cotton farming truly scalable, or is it only feasible for niche or premium supply chains?
Alison Ward: We started our regenerative journey in 2021 when we defined a set of criteria for smallholder cotton farmers. We wanted to make sure that any training and recommendations are suitable for the communities we work in. We have groups of farmers in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Türkiye and Egypt who are testing ideas through the Regenerative Centres of Excellence. We have taken this knowledge from farmers into international forums so we can inform this discussion from a farmer perspective. Most recently we have been part of a working group with Textile Exchange to create a ‘Regenerative Agriculture Outcome Framework’.

The latest outcomes of our REEL Regenerative training programme also demonstrate its scalability as we trained over 250,000 farmers on regenerative practices in 2023-24 alone. The farmers in our Regenerative Centre of Excellence in India saw positive shifts including - 87% of farmers used bio-pesticides, while 23% of farmers practiced crop rotation, increasing from 11% and 1.8% respectively, from year one.

We see key components of regenerative agriculture such as soil regeneration, biodiversity enhancement, and reduced chemical inputs — can benefit farmers at all levels by improving long-term productivity, resilience, and cost efficiency.

Our REEL Regenerative Standard for Cotton introduces a range of regenerative farming practices to cotton farmers, which not only enhance the natural ecosystem, but also enable farmers to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change. It’s a win-win for both the farmers and for the environment. It provides a long-term, sustainable solution. At CottonConnect, we hope to promote regenerative agriculture so that it becomes the norm rather than the exception.

A lot is said about traditional systems of farming. How does CottonConnect integrate local knowledge into its sustainability training, rather than imposing top-down models?
Alison Ward: The CottonConnect model is based on local expertise. All our programmes are delivered by teams who understand the local context, language and customs. We want to learn from the international cotton and agricultural communities and experts and at the same time ensure we learn from traditional insights and methodologies as well. Earlier this year we organised training with the lead agronomist from the International Cotton Advisory Council on carbon measurement and we were able to share insights from our programmes as part of this dialogue.

Each region encounters its own unique realities, facing different terrain, weather conditions, cultural contexts, all of which informs how training is designed to be relevant and effective.

In India there is already the concept of zero input agriculture and a strong organic cotton movement – both of which have fed into our regenerative programmes. 

We also ensure we have feedback from the farmers themselves so we can ensure training is effective. Last year we hosted meetings in China, Egypt and Egypt between farmers, government representatives, academics, and agronomic experts to discuss the future and barriers to adopting regenerative practices.

We held a similar meeting in India with female farmers and stakeholders to shape the next phase of our Women in Cotton programme.

What are the biggest technical or financial barriers to adoption of regenerative practices among smallholder cotton farmers?
Alison Ward: One of the biggest challenges we have seen is the effective demonstration and replication of Regenerative Ag practices. As with any new idea or concept, adoption takes time, we find that techniques that give immediate results are adopted first such as making vermi-compost or bio-fertilisers. Farmers can see the impact on yield and a positive impact on income that season. Other regenerative practices such as no-till see lower adoption levels and the impact may take up to 5 years.

Non-availability of biofertilizers and biopesticides also can be a barrier in some locations. Unlike larger commercial operations, smallholder farmers typically have lesser budgets and a lack of credit to tap into financial instruments such as loans. They are also less able to absorb the high upfront costs that come with implementing crop rotations, tree planting, etc. 

Are brands serious about regenerative commitments, or are they riding a trend? What distinguishes real engagement from lip service?
Alison Ward: Brands have made public commitments on their sustainability measures, at the same time there is growing regulatory pressure as well, and we see this trend continuing. Brands are increasingly aware that the future of the industry relies on a successful transition to regenerative farming. As well as the real impacts of extreme weather events, they are under growing pressure from both consumers and regulation, such as the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive. Indeed, there has been a crackdown on greenwashing with regulators such as the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) introducing tougher rules to address misleading environmental claims. In short, there is greater demand for transparency, accountability and verifiable claims. Failure of brands to meet this, will hurt their bottom line.

What distinguishes real engagement from lip service is the adoption of tangible actions and measurable impact. This means a shift from generic statements to clear goals and steps to meet those objectives.

Sustainability should be a value that is integrated into the company’s culture and strategy, informing decision-making and backed by investment. The transition to regenerative practices requires a sustained effort over time, not just a single initiative, and supply chain traceability is key to tracking progress.

Can you share a story or example of a farmer or community that has significantly benefited from CottonConnect’s initiatives? Say, someone who has been able to climb out of poverty?
Alison Ward: In 2023-2024 alone, we trained over 450,000 farmers. Our REEL Cotton programmes in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, Egypt and Türkiye, helped farmers increase their yields by 6.2%, reduce input costs by 14.3% and enhance their profits by 26.1%, all while improving environmental outcomes.

Take, for example, Chandrakantbhai Patel, an experienced farmer in Gujarat, India. After joining the REEL Cotton Programme, he adopted drip irrigation, reducing water use by 25–30% and increasing yield by 30%. The method improved soil moisture, nutrient delivery, and overall crop health.

Our Women in Cotton programmes have also helped thousands of women, with trainings on sustainable and regenerative cotton farming, and awareness on rights and health. A pilot in Egypt, for instance, empowered women farmers with basic knowledge in microfinance, business management and advanced farming techniques to cultivate and market premium cotton. Since November 2023, the trainings have helped increase participants’ awareness of the cotton trading system in Egypt from 12% to 100% and improved their ability to participate in the cotton market from 24% to 100%.

In Bangladesh, farmer Beauty Khatun took part in CottonConnect’s Entrepreneurship Development Programme, receiving comprehensive training in vermicompost production, business planning, financial management and market linkage. Now, she runs her own vermicompost business, earning around £230 each month, which has significantly increased her family’s income and resilience. 

In India we initiated our women climate change ambassador programme in 2022 to empower women farmers as change leaders in climate resilience. The programme trained 42 women farmers from programme districts in Gujarat, to become climate change ambassadors. These change leaders have since trained 30 farmers each, imparting the knowledge to over 1,200 women, expanding the programme’s reach and impact. Nitaben Vijaybhai Tadavi, a climate ambassador now produces and uses natural agri-inputs, practices intercropping, and agroforestry, increasing her cotton yield from 700 to 1,000 kg/acre.

If you had the power to change one thing in the global cotton supply chain tomorrow, what would it be? What would be your plan for disruption?
Alison Ward: Sustainability in cotton supply chains is not just about reducing harm — it's about creating positive outcomes for people and planet. From empowering farmers and transforming processing, to ensuring brand accountability and consumer education, every stage must evolve in tandem.

Implementing full traceability to the farm level not just to ascertain origin, but to have full transparency of sustainable farming process would be the ideal scenario, and I am happy to say that CottonConnect does just that.