By holding a multi-stakeholder event in Seville, Better Cotton, the largest cotton sustainability program in the world, has begun a strategic collaboration in Spain.
Better Cotton said in a press release that the meeting included participating farmers, ginners, and other industry representatives in addition to the Inter-professional Cotton Association (Espalgodon) and the Regional Government of Andalucia, two stakeholders who have assisted in ensuring alignment between the regional government’s Integrated Production System (IPS) and the Better Cotton Standard System (BCSS). All of Spain’s cotton growers are represented by Espalgodon, a union of three agricultural organizations, and are expected to produce about 64,000 tones of cotton in the season 2023–2024.
In 2021, the organization provided a Declaration of Interest showing their interest in working together to produce cotton that was more environmentally friendly.
Since then, Better Cotton has collaborated with the Regional Government of Andalucia, the primary cotton-growing region of Spain, to establish the Integrated Production System (IPS) as the BCSS’s international equivalent. In actuality, this will allow cotton grown on farms with IPS licenses to be sold as “Better Cotton.”
Better Cotton will be able to access current networks and local knowledge by aligning with organizations operating in Spain’s cotton industry while avoiding duplication. Native cotton growers receive guarantees that their product complies with the widely accepted Better Cotton Standard System in exchange for this.
Due to problems with crop development made worse by droughts, the production of cotton is expected to drop by as much as 48% from the previous season in the 2023–24 growing season.
PwC, a third-party services provider, completed a benchmarking assessment as part of Better Cotton’s New Country Start-Up procedure. This research revealed the gaps between the two systems and the necessary steps to align them.
Before introducing their respective organizations to the audience at the occasion, Better Cotton, Espalgodon, and the regional government marked the beginning of their strategic alliance by signing an agreement.
The country’s predictions for the cotton season in 2023–2024 make it clear how the effects of climate change will affect Spain’s cotton harvest. As Alan McClay, CEO of Better Cotton, noted, “Egalgodon and the Regional Government of Andalucia have shown their commitment to enhancing the sustainability credentials of domestically farmed cotton, which can make farmers more robust in the face of global warming.
