Supima, the marketing brand for American-grown Pima cotton, has announced the launch of its AQRe Project, a blockchain-based platform that assures the authenticity, quality, and responsibility of American-grown Pima cotton used in garments.

The platform will be introduced in July, and as many as 40 Indian textile mills have already registered on it. Globally, 130 spinners have registered on the platform so far.

With garment buyers worldwide increasingly prioritizing sustainability and traceability, the AQRe Project uses blockchain-based traceability and forensic science-based technology for authentication. Supima has nearly 550 licensees globally, including 60-70 in India, some of which are domestic brands.

The US is the largest producer of extra-long staple (ELS) variety Pima cotton, and India is its top buyer, procuring 35-45% of the cotton. The Pima cotton production for the 2023-2024 crop year is expected to be between 2.5 lakh-3 lakh bales, compared to 4.74 lakh bales in 2022-2023 and 3.4 lakh bales in 2021-2022. The floods in California have affected the current production. However, the current price is lower than the cost of production.

Supima's AQRe Project is expected to provide a much-needed solution for garment buyers and manufacturers seeking transparency and traceability in the Pima cotton supply chain. The platform's use of blockchain-based traceability and forensic science-based technology for authentication is a promising development for the textile industry and is likely to set a new standard for supply chain transparency and traceability.