Primark is taking its sustainable cotton sourcing practices to Pakistan.
On the heels of a successful Sustainable Cotton Programme in Gujarat, India that trains smallholder farmers in sustainable farming methods and helped contribute to sales of more than 4.4 million pairs of sustainable cotton pajamas in one year, Primark is taking the program to Pakistan.
Primark said in a statement announcing the news Friday that it will work with agricultural experts at CottonConnect and NGO REEDS in Pakistan, to introduce the program in the country.
“Pakistan is already a key sourcing country for Primark. The country’s fertile landscape creates an optimal environment for cotton to grow, with an established textile manufacturing industry in the region and strong trade routes to other markets,” Primark said. “Building on the success of the programme that launched in Gujarat, India in 2013–which has so far seen more than 6,000 independent cotton farmers enrolled in the programme and an average profit increase of almost 200% for those who have completed their training–farmers in Pakistan can expect to take home increased profit and yield.”
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By 2022, Primark expects that more than 30,000 farmers will have enrolled in its program to learn sustainable cotton farming methods.
The cotton coming out of the new program will be part of one of Primark’s most popular product lines, women’s pajamas. The retailer said more than one in three pairs of women’s pajamas are bought in Primark, so the move could mark a much greater uptake in sustainable cotton across the U.K.
“We’re very proud of the Sustainable Cotton Programme, and we’re delighted to be able to use our experience in India to help train and support the farming community in Pakistan,” Katharine Stewart, ethical trade and environmental sustainability director at Primark, said in a press release. “We’ve deliberately targeted regions that are already used by our suppliers, so we can introduce even more cotton grown using sustainable farming methods into our supply chain as soon as possible.”
It’s all going to yield greater transparency for Primark, too.
“By starting at the very beginning of the supply chain, the partnership allows Primark to trace the cotton through every stage of the supply chain, from farming to the supplier’s factory floor to Primark shelves in store,” the retailer said.
As public demand for more sustainable sourcing mounts, the retailer is working to play its part. Earlier in the year, Primark published its global sourcing map to prove its transparency and dedication to improving global supply chains. But, the Sustainable Cotton Program has the power to change the lives of farmers in the region.
Primark reports an average profit increase of nearly 200 percent, or a 10 percent increase in yield, for those who followed the program to completion. That has also translated to a 15.8% reduction in input costs arising from shared seed-buying initiatives and reduced chemical and fertilizer usage. Overall, farmers in the program used 24.7% less chemical fertilizer and 50.4% less chemical pesticide.
