The US Cotton Trust Protocol, a voluntary farm-level sustainability programme, has been invited to join Cotton 2040. Convened by sustainability non-profit Forum for the Future, the Cotton 2040 coalition is a unique partnership that brings together representatives from standards, producers, brands and retailers, and existing industry initiatives.The aim is specifically to build on and accelerate collective action to scale up and overcome barriers to sustainable cotton uptake across multiple standards. The US Cotton Trust Protocol is a new system for responsibly-grown cotton that provides annual data for six areas of sustainability aligned with the UN Sustainability Goals. This year-over-year data, available for the first time, allows brands and retailers to better measure progress towards meeting sustainability commitments. The Trust Protocol also will be included in Cotton 2040's CottonUP guide, a toolkit to help sourcing directors make sustainable decisions. The CottonUP guide to sourcing sustainable cotton seeks to address one of the main barriers for companies looking to start sourcing or increase the amount of sustainable cotton they source: the time and resource required to research and implement the most appropriate sourcing approach for their organisation's sustainability priorities. The guide highlights the business case and main sourcing options for sustainable cotton, provides guidance on creating a sourcing strategy and on working with suppliers, and shares case studies from companies that have already navigated the complex challenges of sourcing more sustainable cotton.
展开▼
