AMERICA – In August, key industry players gathered to discuss the prospects and challenges facing the sector in Pakistan. This was a significant step forward for the Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA) initiative’s efforts to develop organic cotton cultivation methods in South Asia.
Participants from a wide range of organizations, including brands, regional farm groups, NGOs such Lok Sanjh, CABI CWA, Sawie, Reeds, and WWF-Pakistan, textile manufacturers, seed firms, and procurement agencies, attended the meeting.
How the OCA’s programs and approaches may encourage partnerships and interdependencies among stakeholders was one of the main themes of discussion. The participants had the chance to discuss their difficulties and worries, which would help OCA better align its priorities and programs for its work in Pakistan.
The summit also signaled a significant turning point in OCA’s involvement in the area. OCA stated that it hoped to strengthen its presence and plan for the future while promoting its purpose of building a more sustainable and transparent cotton supply chain based on its two years of expertise and partnerships on the ground.
According to Asif Mehmood, senior program manager at OCA, the organization hoped to make it clear that organic cotton and in-conversion cotton, which is the output of farms once they have entered the conversion period, should be a crucial component of the preferred fiber roadmap for textile products made in Pakistan.
The availability of certified bio-input, local regulatory considerations, and stakeholder participation were some of the issues that were discussed at the discussion, according to him. “It was encouraging to observe the participants’ enthusiasm for learning about OCA’s work and their support in tackling issues related to organic cotton. It’s a step in the right direction, and it’s good.”
A significant participant in Pakistan’s textile industry, Soorty Enterprises’ Asad Soorty, stated that attendance at the event showed “a promising path towards a more resilient ecosystem for organic cotton cultivation in Pakistan.”
He said that the project will “promise to transform the deserving region of Balochistan” in addition to potentially raising farmer wages. “We anticipate that this meeting will have far-reaching repercussions, spurring a rise in the market for Pakistani organic cotton on a global scale. We create a more promising, sustainable future together.
The OCA has additionally released its 2022 annual report, which details the organization’s most recent achievements in creating a trustworthy and durable organic cotton supply chain.
The report also highlights the launch of 13 new organic cotton training modules, a significant increase in investment in organic and regenerative practices, and a tripling of farming partners to 74,000, with each earning, according to the report, an average of 6% more in net profit from their cotton per hectare than their local, non-organic peers. In addition to highlighting the launch in Pakistan, the report also highlights several other significant milestones.
