This thought-provoking article from Retail Dive, we thought, deserves a share. It’s called Adidas, Ikea lead on sustainable cotton sourcing.
In it, Emma Cosgrove shares her two cents about the Sustainable Cotton Rankings that put Adidas and Ikea on top of the list. Here’s one of her key insights:
The definition of sustainable cotton used for the report’s assessment of the strength of sustainable cotton supply includes Organic cotton, Fairtrade cotton, Cotton Made in Africa (a formal standard covering agricultural and social impact) and cotton certified by the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI). BCI works with farmers to promote a cotton production method “that cares for the environment, minimising the negative effects of fertilisers and pesticides, and caring for water, soil health and natural habitats.”
However, the companies listed in the Sustainable Cotton Ranking were evaluated for company policies that firmly direct more sustainable cotton sourcing — without stipulating by what standards — along with actual followthrough on these policies and the internal traceability available to benchmark sustainability improvements in their cotton supply.
To learn more about this issue, take a look at the rest of this interesting piece….