The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) said a group of its United States-based cotton growers have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 54 percent in a single season, compared to regional averages. And that impact increased to 77 percent when including carbon removals.
The BCI-licensed growers in Arkansas, Mississippi and Missouri implemented four regenerative agricultural practices through a collaborative pilot project with Indigo Ag, sustainable cotton organization and agricultural solutions provider. Those regenerative practices include crop rotation, cover cropping, nitrogen management and no-till farming.
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Through these practices, the farmers were able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon that totaled more than 17,000 metric tons over 19,000 acres. Indigo Ag collected and verified the results, generating impact data that allows carbon reductions to be monetized, factoring in the costs of regenerative practice adoption and subsequent benefits per metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent.
“This project captures the power of regenerative agriculture and the value of field-level data,” said Lars van Doremalen, director of impact, BCI. “The growers we work with have driven change for years. But by quantifying that impact, we can unlock tangible incentives for both farming communities and fashion businesses to drive change together.”
Amid a challenging economic climate shaped by tariffs, geopolitical tensions and other disruptions, BCI and Indigo Ag said this monetization could be a crucial benefit for farmers.
By combining rigorous field-level measurement with trusted verification, Leigh Cooper Swisher, director of sustainability solutions at Indigo Ag, said this pilot demonstrates how regenerative agriculture can deliver real, quantifiable climate impact within the cotton supply chain.
“Supported by Indigo’s data collection, verification and quantification platform and policy expertise, brands and retailers can directly invest in verified carbon reductions while creating meaningful new revenue streams for farmers, at a time when many U.S. farmers are struggling to keep the lights on,” she said. “It’s a powerful model for aligning environmental progress with economic opportunity—accelerating Scope 3 decarbonization and scaling regenerative practices where they matter most: in the field.”
Scope 3 emissions—which are all indirect greenhouse gas emissions produced in a company’s value chain, excluding purchased energy—typically account for more than 70 percent of a business’ carbon footprint, according to the Science Based Targets Initiative.
Through this program, retailers and brands can now purchase carbon reductions per metric tone of CO2 emissions. Through those purchases, BCI estimates program farmers can earn an additional $53 per metric ton, creating opportunities for increased income while also incentivizing implementation of regenerative practices for growers.
Indigo Ag has long worked with food crop farmers in the U.S., and Cooper Swisher said this partnership with BCI will allow the company to expand its reach in promoting and supporting sustainable farming practices.
“This collaboration builds on Indigo’s track record for deploying rigorous Scope 3 programs for the food and beverage sector across hundreds of thousands of acres,” she said. “We are excited about the opportunity to bring learnings from agri-food value chains to the cotton supply chain, supporting growers who cultivate both food and cotton crops while enabling meaningful progress at scale for fashion brands and retailers.”
