WHY DEVELOP THE U.S. COTTON TRUST PROTOCOL? RESULTS FROM THE BRAND/RETAILER BENCHMARKING STUDY

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WHY DEVELOP THE U.S.

COTTON TRUST PROTOCOL?

RESULTS FROM THE BRAND/RETAILER BENCHMARKING STUDY

TO LEARN MORE, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL CCI REPRESENTATIVE.

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In 2019, Dr. Yehia Elmogahzy and David Sasso worked as consultants with a Turkish mill to identify a new laydown strategy. This new strategy generated a substantial financial saving and improvements in overall yarn quality and

processing performance.

Sustainability has become almost ubiquitous in the apparel

space. While brands and retailers struggle to define sustainability within their organizations, as well as with their customers, there is no question that the focus on sustainability will only continue to grow. Today, brands and retailers are increasingly looking to industry leaders to set sustainability goals and benchmarks. Of the 234 European, U.S., and other global brand and retailer sustainability decision-makers surveyed in a recent Hill-Knowlton Strategies survey, nearly three-quarters (74%) indicated that their organization employs a list of sustainable textiles. However, of this group, only one-third included U.S. cotton on this list. In comparison, nearly two-thirds included Organic (65%) and BCI (61%) cotton. This suggests that half of all brands and retailers are either excluding or devaluing U.S. cotton from their purchasing decisions. Interestingly, no real leader has emerged among the sustainability initiatives. Only 35% of the brands and retailers and 43% brands of the brands and retailers believe organic and BCI are leaders in sustainability (respectively). This presents an opportunity for U.S. cotton.

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MOST BRANDS REFER TO A LIST OF SUSTAINABLE FABRICS/TEXTILES SPECIFIC TO THEIR ORGANIZATION, AND AMONG THEM, ONE-THIRD HAVE U.S. COTTON ON THAT LIST.

Yes

No

Unsure

DOES YOUR ORGANIZATION HAVE A LIST OF SUSTAINABLE FABRICS / TEXTILES?

21%

5%

74%

Organic BCI U.S. cotton LEADS Australian CMiA Brazilian MYBMP Other Don't Know

WHICH COTTONS ARE INCLUDED IN THE LIST?

65% 61% 16% 33% 13% 13% 9% 5% 16% 5%

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When it comes to getting on the list of sustainable textiles, U.S. cotton not only competes with other cottons but also with other fibers. When asked about barriers to adopting a new sustainability initiative, 29% of respondents indicated that their organization’s focus was on using textiles other than cotton. Therefore, U.S. cotton faces a double barrier in terms of sustainability: 1)

confronting the issue of the acceptance of cotton as a sustainable fiber and, 2) ensuring that U.S. cotton meets or exceeds all

current sustainability standards.

U.S. cotton has been focused on sustainability for decades.

According to Field to Market data, in the past 35 years U.S. cotton has increased land use efficiency by 31%, while reducing soil loss by 44%, water use by 82%, energy use by 38%, and greenhouse gas emissions by 30%. While U.S. cotton has been telling its sustainability story and highlighting its shrinking environmental imprint, more and more brands and retailers are demanding industry wide standards and third-party verification.

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To address this growing concern, the U.S cotton industry created the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol (Trust Protocol). The Trust Protocol sets new standards for sustainably grown cotton and continuous improvement in sustainability that will be measured and verified via a trusted third-party. The U.S. cotton industry currently spends more than $100 million per year in scientific research to continue developing the most advanced tools necessary to reduce its environmental footprint. These technologies help producers save money while also preserving and even improving the

environment. The goal of the Trust Protocol is to help brands and retailers communicate this progress to its end consumers.

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The Trust Protocol follows a four-stage process of: 1. Standards

2. Measurement 3. Verification 4. Data

Standards involve setting sustainability goals for the U.S. cotton industry. By 2025, the U.S. cotton industry aims to increase land use efficiency by 13% and soil carbon by 20%, while reducing soil loss by 50%, water use by 18%, and greenhouse gas emissions by 39%.

Measurement includes a voluntary enrollment of U.S. cotton producers to measure and track their environmental impact. The U.S. industry aims to enroll half of all U.S. cotton producers by 2025.

Verification will involve both second-party and

third-party verification by internationally recognized verification organizations to monitor progress toward goals.

Finally, the USCTP will be the only cotton sustainability

organization with the ability to provide quantifiable and verifiable

annual data to track its sustainability progress.

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CONCLUSION

The Trust Protocol provides the U.S. cotton industry with a comprehensive sustainability program including standards, verification, and data in the industry. U.S. cotton producers are using the most sophisticated technology available to produce sustainable cotton and can prove this with data. For brands and retailers seeking verification of this record, the Trust Protocol will provide it. For more information or to sign up for the Trust Protocol, please visit https://trustuscotton.org/.

TO LEARN MORE, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL CCI REPRESENTATIVE. CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE LIST OF REPRESENTATIVES BY REGION.