Primark, a cotton field in India has trained 1,251 female smallholders through its partnership with CottonConnect. The initiative, which is being run in partnership with CottonConnect and the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), will be extended by a further six years. This extension will make Primark train around 10,000 female smallholder farmers in India. It is designed to support women from traditionally male-dominated farming communities in Gujarat, India, to introduce sustainable farming methods, improve cotton yields and increase incomes.

Primark said the three-year pilot has already trained 1,251 female smallholders. By year two of the trial, female farmers recorded an average profit increase of 211 per cent, an average yield increase of 12.6 per cent, and a reduction of input costs by 5 per cent.

Moreover, the program has encouraged adoption of more sustainable farming methods - including a 13.5 per cent reduction of fertiliser usage, a 53.5 per cent reduction of pesticide usage, and a water usage decrease of 12.9 per cent.