CottonConnect
CottonConnect is a pioneering social enterprise that is reimagining the future for supply chains. Our work helps brands to access more sustainable cotton and other natural fibres, creating a more transparent and resilient supply chain that will continue to deliver the best raw material, now and in the future.
Founded in:
2009
SAN Member since:
2023
Mission Statement
With headquarters in London and on-the-ground teams around the world, CottonConnect is helping to improve the sustainability of global textile supply chains, thereby enabling producers and raw material farmers to work more responsibly and enjoy better livelihoods.
Geographic Scope
Creating economic opportunities for over 560,000 cotton farmers in India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Egypt and Peru. They currently have over 70 full-time employees working across offices in the UK, China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Egypt.
Work Areas
These are CottonConnect’s focus areas of work:
1. Raw material sourcing
With specialized agronomic knowledge, CottonConnect works on the ground to build the skills, capacity and understanding of thousands of farmers that supply cotton, giving them the training and tools they know will help them boost their yield and profitability.
To reassure retailers and brands, CottonConnect has developed REEL Codes of Conduct to ensure agricultural training programs follow best practices and create the right outcomes. The codes define specific criteria for sustainable raw material production to improve farm performance and cotton quality in the supply chain, and reduce environmental impacts.
2. Climate action
CottonConnect is focused on delivering sustainable cotton programs, solutions and interventions that cut GHGs while helping farmers adapt to global warming. Some climate action implementations include carbon mapping at the farm level to help reduce greenhouse emissions and address biodiversity challenges by improving soil health through carbon sequestration. CottonConnect is also helping farmers adapt to climate change by building resilience through tools and knowledge to boost productivity.
3. Social impact
CottonConnect’s work has already transformed the lives of millions of people in cotton-farming communities. Their programs help farmers to be more productive and profitable, helping to improve worker protection and people's business skills, and boost gender rights. CottonConnect helps empower people and improve the social impact of sourcing in the following ways:
- Empowering women by providing training and education to improve their health and well-being, improve gender parity, enhance their rights and increase their access to enterprise development.
- Improving farmers’ skills by focusing on financial literacy and financial management and encouraging them to see their farm as a business.
- Ensuring respect for human rights, gender inclusion & no child labor.
4. Traceability
CottonConnect helps brands and retailers connect with the farmers at the other end of the supply chain. Their relationships with all links in the chain mean CottonConnect can trace garments back from Tier 1 suppliers all the way to the farm. To support brands in understanding those difficult-to-track last-mile journeys, they have developed TraceBale, a bespoke, proprietary traceability software tool that provides visibility on all farmer transactions.
CottonConnect’s mission is to "reimagine the future for supply chains." They help global brands source more fairly and sustainably by creating more robust, resilient and successful raw material supply chains.