Better Cotton calls on COP27 leaders to support frontline farmers

Better Cotton has urged leaders attending COP27 to prioritise climate justice for the world’s farmers and agricultural workforce.

The organisation, a sustainability initiative for the cotton industry, issued a “stark warning” to participants of the event, asking for them to strengthen their commitment and turn talk into action.

In its statement, Better Cotton called for a greater collaboration across the fashion sector and its textile value chains to drive greater transparency, advocacy and action in supporting smallholder farming communities around the globe.

It added that the industry's key players must continue to work towards goals of the Paris Agreement in order to “avoid catastrophic climate and environmental tipping points”.

In a release, Better Cotton said that climate mitigation and adaptation are only possible if there is a sustained investment in regenerative agriculture and sustainable farming.

It noted that cotton farmers in Egypt had already embraced and implemented its Better Cotton Standard as a tool to establish more sustainable production practices.

Alan McClay, CEO, Better Cotton said: “We know that climate change poses a great risk to cotton farmers - with rising temperatures and more extreme weather events like flooding and unpredictable rains.

“We will help on the ground by incentivising farmers to embrace both climate-smart and regenerative agricultural practices, in turn helping cotton communities survive and thrive.”