Textile manufacturer and knitwear exporter Kay & Emms Global has joined forces with the Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA) to expand sustainable cotton sourcing in Pakistan.Textile manufacturer and knitwear exporter Kay & Emms Global has joined forces with the Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA) to expand sustainable cotton sourcing in Pakistan.
As one of OCA’s implementing partners, Kay & Emms Global will work to assist cotton farming communities in Pakistan with organic cotton cultivation by supporting transparent, traceable and farmer-centric practices. The collaboration will connect local farmers with training, certification guidance and access to premium markets, while also ensuring that their organic cotton is fully traceable.
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“Joining hands with OCA allows us to align our sustainability goals with global standards and bring real, measurable impact at the farm level,” said Barry Tariq, director of sales and marketing at Kay & Emms Global. “This partnership strengthens our mission to foster regenerative agriculture, ensure supply chain traceability and respond to the growing demand for ethically sourced materials from our customers worldwide.”
Last year, Kay & Emms launched an organic cotton initiative in southern Punjab in partnership with Pakistan’s Rural Business Development Center with the goal of increasing sustainable agriculture in the region. The initial phase of the program included 500 farmers transitioning to organic growing practices. Kay & Emms estimated that the program would reduce water usage by up to 71 percent compared to conventional farming practices. Kay & Emms said it wanted to increase organic cultivation by 5x in the Punjab region.
This partnership also plays a role in OCA’s expansion in new regions across the globe. Earlier this month, the organization released an annual report that outlined the progress it has made in promoting organic cotton farming worldwide. According to that report, OCA scaled to include more than 100,000 farmer participants in its Farm Program across Pakistan, India and Turkey. In the program’s pilot year, five projects spanning 3,040 hectares (about 7,512 acres) brought 78 farmers in Turkey—the world’s second-largest organic cotton-producing country—under OCA’s umbrella.
Headquartered in Faisalabad, Kay & Emms has a presence in Pakistan, Turkey and the United States and produces apparel knits for a number of global apparel brands, including American Eagle Outfitters, SanMar, and League (L2 brands).
