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Sustainable Cotton: Making it cleaner and greener

Sustainable Cotton: Making it cleaner and greener. Vijverberg sessie November 12, 2008 The Hague, Netherlands. Hammad Naqi Khan Director – Freshwater & Toxics Programme WWF - Pakistan. www.panda.org/freshwater. Outline. Introduction Cotton and Water Sustainable Cotton Production

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Sustainable Cotton: Making it cleaner and greener

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  1. Sustainable Cotton:Making it cleaner and greener Vijverberg sessie November 12, 2008 The Hague, Netherlands Hammad Naqi Khan Director – Freshwater & Toxics Programme WWF - Pakistan www.panda.org/freshwater

  2. Outline • Introduction • Cotton and Water • Sustainable Cotton Production • Addressing the Challenges • Roles & Responsibilities of Brands, Suppliers and Farmers

  3. What is WWF? • Largest independent environmental NGO • Science & solution based • US$ 500 million annual income • Approx. 5000 staff worldwide • Projects in +/- 100 countries • Approx. 5 million supporters

  4. FORESTS SPECIES FRESHWATER TOXICS OCEANS & COASTS CLIMATE CHANGE GLOBAL 200 ECOREGIONS WWF’s Priorities Global Programs Priority Regions

  5. Our blue planet …… ..… is getting redder

  6. Irrigation accounts for 2/3 of water use worldwide and as much as 90% in many developing countries • About 40% of the world's food is grown in irrigated soils, which make up 18% of global cropland.

  7. Some Agriculture Realities.. • Global food demand will double in 50 years • Increased income (globally 2.4 times by 2050) will lead to increased consumption • Per capita arable land globally is decreasing • Intensification and efficiency will be key • Biofuels compete with food and fiber for land • 3-4% increase per year in cotton demand (2 billion kg/year)

  8. Cotton: a global crop

  9. Produced in 90 countries (approx.) • 80% developing nations • 35 million Ha of land under cotton (2.5% of cropland) • World production & consumption: ~25 MT/ year- 8 countries grow 85% of all cotton- 30-35% of primary production traded internationally yearly • - Finished products go to every country • Vital to the economies and people of many developing countries- e.g. C.Asia, West Africa, Pakistan Cotton: a global crop

  10. Cotton and development • More than 90% of cotton farmers live in developing countries • Vast majority are poor, small-holders (<2ha) • Cotton is often only cash crop • Cotton is often only source of credit • Poverty, debt and crisis are only one crop failure away for farmers

  11. ISSUES • Water • Pesticides • Social issues • GMO

  12. Cotton growth to productionWater Losses • First / agricultural stage: Cotton production at field level • evaporation of infiltrated rainwater for cotton growth (green water use), • withdrawal of ground or surface water for irrigation (blue water use), • water pollution due to the leaching & run off of fertilizers and pesticides • Second / industrial stage : Processing of seed cotton into final cotton products • Abstraction of process water from surface or ground water, • Pollution of water as a result of the waste flows from cotton processing industries

  13. Global Water Use in Cotton Production UNESCO-IHE (Institute for Water Education), Water Footprint of Cotton Consumption. From Tables 3.4 and 3.5. 2005

  14. Area and Textile Growth in Pakistan

  15. Pakistan Cotton Project & its linkages with Better Cotton Initiative (BCI)

  16. Methodology • Research • BMPs collated and tested • Access to financing options / micro credit • Gap analysis of the Policy framework

  17. 2. Farm level implementation • TOF and FTOF: Training of facilitators and Farmers Training of Facilitators • FFS( Farmer Field School): A process of discovery based learning/teaching with participatory approach • FO (Farmer Organization) Capacity building of existing and/ or new FOs for the adoption and promotion of BMPs to educate the farming communities

  18. 3. Foundation for an enabling environment • National Agricultural related policy review • Influencing private sector support • Links with International initiatives to define ‘Better’ Standards

  19. Farmer training: 400+ Farmer Field Schools established In cotton growing areas…

  20. .…and 10000 farmers trained

  21. Pakistan Sustainable Cotton Initiative Better farming practices for cotton • 30% reduction in fertiliser use 23% reduction in irrigation water 60% reduction in pesticides

  22. FTOF Gross margins have increased • Five photos

  23. Health has improved from reduced pesticides and increased awareness “Before we understood the impact of pesticides we thought our children got sick for superstitious reasons – like we had done something wrong. Now we know if it is a pesticide problem and take our children to the doctor”

  24. Private sector support • More than 240,000 kg of “better” cotton was purchased by a local miller in 2006 • IKEA is supporting the development of better practices in cotton production • The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) is testing their sustainability standards with WWF in Pakistan

  25. Better Irrigation Practices Bed and Furrow Irrigation Laser Land Leveler Right: Alternate Row Irrigation

  26. Water Saving due to Better Irrigation Practices • Bed and furrow technique: 27-33% • Laser leveller: 33-37% • Alternate row irrigation: 22-31% • Water scouting: 16-24%

  27. The Way Forward……

  28. Brands/Retailers • Three main drivers: • supply chain security, • reputation risk and • consumer markets • Brands/Retailers should/can • build integrated supply chains • promote an industry standard for sustainable cotton by supporting BCI • exert pressure on suppliers by actively demanding better cotton • provide easily accessible product information to consumers. • support projects which assist farmers in making the shift to sustainable seed cotton production http://www.fao.org/prods/GAP/DOCS/DOC/BusinessCase_RdeMan_English.doc

  29. Suppliers • Ensure that environmental concerns are playing an increasing role in supply chain management. • Should understand that cotton grown through BMPs is more profitable for the farmers through direct contact with farmers and Ginners (no third party involvement). • Institutional support to promote sustainable cotton production and development of Better/sustainable cotton standards. • Implementation of BMPs in their farms. • Influence and promote BMPs in their sourcing area.

  30. What can Farmers do? • Organize themselves & participate in community run programs • Be innovative, do experimentation, informed decision-making • Switch from conventional to sustainable better cotton practices • Build networks with research organizations and any local organizations that work towards sustainable farm practices

  31. Thank you! freshwater

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