The total number of cotton acres has increased 25% since the 2022 crop year, which is the single largest growth reported in the Trust Protocol scheme in any single year.
The increase means that 16% of all planted cotton acres in the US in 2023 are now enrolled in the programme, which the Trust Protocol says is a key milestone in the development of the programme.
This is also the fourth consecutive year of expansion for the Trust Protocol.
The US Cotton Trust Protocol aims to set a new standard in sustainable cotton production, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Its members include apparel brand Levi Strauss & Co, Ralph Lauren and J. Crew as well as more than 1,800 suppliers.
Members to the scheme can track US Cotton and Trust Protocol Cotton through its Protocol Consumption Management Solution (PCMS), which tracks cotton grown and harvested on member farms. To date, 970 million Protocol Cotton Consumption Unit (PCCU)'s are available to be consumed in the PCMS, which is equivalent to 4.45 million bales of cotton.
Apparel company filings mentioning "US cotton" 2016-2023
According to GlobalData's filings database, the term "US cotton" was mentioned just seven times in apparel company filings in 2016. That has since steadily increased, with financial filings now demonstrating a growing interest in American-grown cotton. The term was mentioned 37 times in 2022 and 41 times in 2023 so far.
Top apparel companies mentioning "US cotton" in their filings include US denim retailer Levi Strauss & Co, which has mentioned the topic eight times so far in 2023. British retailer Marks and Spencer has mentioned US cotton six times in 2023 so far, as has US children's apparel retailer The Children's Place and US conglomerate Hanesbrands.
US Cotton Trust Protocol’s executive director Daren Abney says: “We continue to be inspired and encouraged to see that US cotton growers have once again expanded the number of planted acres enrolled in the program, underscoring their unwavering commitment to ongoing improvement. With the growing number of enrolled acres, we’re making even more environmentally responsible cotton accessible to our brand and retailer members for sourcing. The Trust Protocol team is excited to support our members in their more responsible sourcing practices.”
Earlier this year (September) the US Cotton Trust Protocol welcomed US retailer Macy’s as a member, as part of wider plans to sustainably source more than 50% of its private brand cotton products by the end of 2023.
In August, the US Cotton Trust Protocol asked third-party certification body Averum to support its fast growing membership, following a 120% increase in grower enrolment since its launch.
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