The recent publication of a 10-page report titled ‘Mind the Gap: Towards a More Sustainable Cotton Market’ has prompted a response from Cotton Incorporated aimed at filling gaps in the report. Published by Pesticides Action Network UK, Solidaridad and WWF, the report was carried by a number of sustainability and textile trade press. The document portrays conventional cotton as unsustainable, citing environmental, social and economic issues. It also asserts that sustainable cotton is only available through certification programs such as Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), CMIA and Organic, and suggests that more promotion is needed to call attention to problems with conventional cotton.

Cotton Incorporated, in response published in the medias refutes some of the claims and provide facts to fill gaps in the report. In an editorial, Cotton Incorporated President and CEO Berrye Worsham called the ‘Mind the Gap’ report a document that pits cotton programs against each other, at the expense of the entire industry. The paper positions certification programs not as one path to responsible cotton production, but the only path. This philosophy favors paperwork over real, measurable and verified progress, including that made by conventional cotton growers in many countries. By identifying those facts that support a pro-certification agenda, the report obscures the fact that cotton is the only commodity fiber offering the supply chain multiple methods and programs to assure responsible production and traceability.

Cotton Incorporated points out many inaccuracies from the ‘Mind the Gap’ and strongly asserts the case for sustainable conventional US cotton. Cotton Incorporated also highlights the Cotton LEADS programme which is not mentioned in ‘Mind the Gap’ report.