The Hugo Boss Foundation has entered into a strategic partnership with an Indian nonprofit to transform 5,250 acres—an equivalent of approximately 3,000 football fields—into regenerative food and cotton landscapes through smallholder farmer empowerment, infrastructure development and capacity building at a cost of EUR 500,000 over three years.
- Under this partnership, the Grameena Vikas Kendram Society for Rural Development (GVK Society), working in the tribal villages of the Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh state in South India, will train 1,500 farmers, 900 of which will be women, in regenerative farming.
Apart from the social and economic benefits of building long-term prosperity and resilience, the initiative will work towards mitigating climate change and increasing biodiversity in the area.
- As a result, over a period of three years, approximately 31,000 tonnes of CO2 will be sequestered.
- In addition to that, around 1,000 tonnes of synthetic fertilisers, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) as well as 2,000 kg of pesticide and herbicide will be avoided.
HUGO BOSS FOUNDATION: Launched in 2023, the Hugo Boss Foundation is driven by the purpose to be “Bold for the Planet”, supporting climate and environmental protection initiatives around the world.
- With the "Every Purchase Counts" initiative, Hugo Boss makes a donation for every own product sold worldwide, both offline and online (excluding licensed products).
WHAT THEY SAID:
We are excited to support GVK Society and their holistic approach to regenerative agriculture. By partnering with them, we are supporting one of the most innovative methods of material sourcing, which is key for reducing the fashion industry's environmental footprint and also improving the living standards of local farmers. This aligns with our own commitment at Hugo Boss to source 100 percent of the natural materials in our collections through regenerative farming or closed-loop recycling by 2030.
— Daniel Grieder
CEO / Managing Director
Hugo Boss AG / Hugo Boss Foundation
At GVK Society, our goal is to transform agriculture into a powerful nature-based solution, nurturing self-reliant communities that live in harmony with each other and the environment. Thanks to funding from the Hugo Boss Foundation, we will be able to advance our regenerative food and fibre landscape model, and diversify beyond cotton to include crops like coffee, pepper, millets, turmeric, and ginger, with international market connections. This support adds to an even healthier and balanced soil in the long-term and strengthens our ability to deepen our impact, reaching more farmers in more villages.
— Aneel Kumar Ambavaram
Chief Functionary
GVK Society
