Cotton On conference sets out sustainability challenges
Published on: May 21, 2009
A more sustainable model for producing cotton, the world’s most popular fibre, was debated at a recent conference attended by Two Tomorrows consultant Judith Murphy.
Called Cotton On and held in Bristol in the UK in May, the event attracted participants from across the whole cotton supply chain from growers to buyers and retailers to consumers.
Key issues discussed included fair trade, organic production, responsible supply chain practices and sustainable design.
“We heard some fantastic and inspiring examples of where responsible cotton production had a positive impact on lives of producers as well as the environment,” says Judith.
“The economic and sustainability business cases are converging and we saw examples of producers who had moved to organic cotton and were able to make savings of up to 60 per cent of their input costs as they were no longer buying and using chemicals in production”
Speakers at the event included Observer journalist Lucy Siegle, Barbara Crowther of the Fairtrade Foundation, Monica Philbrick from Traidcraft, and the Soil Association’s Robin Maynard.
