A new cross-industry initiative aims to make sustainable cotton a clothing industry staple. The coalition, called Cotton 2040, brings together existing sustainable cotton initiatives, industry stakeholders and clothing brands to encourage the use of sustainably sourced cotton in the apparel sector.

Cotton is the world’s most commonly used natural fiber and is one of the world’s oldest sources of textiles. Accounting for a mere 2.3 per cent of agricultural land worldwide, cotton growing accounts for 6.2 per cent of global pesticide sales and 14.1 per cent of total insecticide sales.

The initiative is aiming to push production of sustainable cotton from 13 per cent to more than 30 per cent of total cotton production by 2040. Thirty per cent is typically considered to be the tipping point at which solutions to challenges, such as sustainable cotton in this case, begin to rapidly scale and enter the mainstream.

Sustainable cotton now represents less than 20 per cent of the more than 20 million tons of cotton produced annually.

Brands and retailers are often confused by the broad range of sustainable cotton sourcing options on the market. The coalition functions as a one-stop guide for companies to learn about the various standards of sustainable cotton.