What is fair trade organic cotton?
‘Fair trade’ is promoted by a wide array of organizations internationally. This ‘fair trade’ cotton is produced by farmers whose producer organizations have been certified according to the standards of Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO), one of the four umbrella organizations referred to above.
Are Cotton Traders ethical?
Cotton Traders Limited We have over 60 factories in 16 countries that produce our clothing, footwear, accessories and home products, all of which are signed up to our Ethical Trading Policy. We behave in a responsible and ethical way and take modern day slavery and human trafficking extremely seriously .
How does Fairtrade cotton help the environment?
Fairtrade works with farmers to stop or reduce the usage of agrochemicals and supports them to adapt to changing climate patterns. Fairtrade cotton fields in Western Africa and India are rain-fed, reducing the region’s water footprint, when compared with production in other countries.
Which countries produce fair trade cotton?
Where does Fairtrade cotton come from? Fairtrade works in 59 countries, with 650 producer groups touching the lives of approximately 7.5 million farmers, workers and their families. There are 33 cotton producer groups in India, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali, Senegal, Brazil, Egypt, Peru and Kyrgyzstan.
Is organic cotton fair trade?
Organic-Fair Trade Cotton is cotton that is certified to both Fair Trade and organic standards. Fair Trade standards ensure farmers are paid a minimum price and require farmers to organize into democratic producer organizations.
What are the main problems facing cotton workers?
The most common challenges for unsustainable cotton growing systems include:
- 1Water quantity and quality issues.
- 2Inappropriate and excessive use of pesticides and fertilisers.
- 3Low incomes of smallholder farmers.
- 4Forced labour and child labour.
- 5Soil depletion.
- 6Adapting to land use pressures of the future.
What is the problem with cotton?
Impacts. It is estimated that 97% of the water in the Indus River goes towards producing crops like cotton. Cotton’s most prominent environmental impacts result from the use of agrochemicals (especially pesticides), the consumption of water, and the conversion of habitat to agricultural use.
Why is cotton bad?
The problems of cotton production: why is cotton bad for the environment? Conventionally-grown cotton is bad for the environment because of its high water consumption and pollution, soil degradation, greenhouse gas emissions, and use of harmful pesticides and fertilisers.
Why is it difficult to grow organic cotton?
Overall organic cotton requires up to 91% less water to produce (from farm to bale) than conventionally grown cotton. Hazardous synthetic pesticides and fertilizers are banned in organic farming, so rivers, lakes and drinking water are kept cleaner too.
Is cotton a pollutant?
Cotton production is the cause of heavy pollution Cotton is the crop most heavily sprayed with chemicals in the world. Hazardous pesticides commonly used for cotton production are often found in nearby water resources.
How does cotton impact society?
The Australian cotton industry has a long history of supporting local businesses and sponsoring community projects to assist those in need, from rural mental health to local rugby clubs and rural breast cancer centres. 65% were involved in a local community group. 52% were actively involved in local sport.
Are cotton clothes bad for the environment?
While cotton is a naturally occurring fiber, it poses many problems for the environment. Studies show that it can take upwards of 20,000 liters of water to produce just one cotton t-shirt and a pair of jeans. The excess water is then polluted with chemicals and dyes.
How thirsty is cotton?
Cotton is a desert plant that requires similar amounts of water per hectare to other summer crops planted in the same regions. In fact cotton uses a lot less water than many other summer crops. Rather than being “thirsty” cotton is well-adapted to surviving and producing a crop in hot and dry conditions.