The noise created by the fashion industry's trend cycles and aspirational marketing seem to drown its harmful impact on the environment. The aggressive demand for cotton continues to grow when the scale at which clothes are disposed by end user generates results in the overproduction waste that is impacting the ecological balance. Global cotton is projected to grow by 1.6% annually over the next decade with an expansion in the spinning capacity in Asia, particularly in Bangladesh, India and Vietnam. This is concerning with the ongoing climate crisis and the possibility that we are likely to breach the 1.5C levels for one year between 2026 and 2030. 

Regenerative cotton goes beyond organic cotton. Where organic cotton focuses on avoiding synthetic inputs, regenerative cotton focuses on restoring and improving ecosystems by enhancing soil health, biodiversity, water cycles and carbon sequestration. Interest in it is growing in the EU, where brands face stricter sustainability reporting and environmental-claims rules such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

Understanding regenerative cotton production

Regenerative agriculture is found to restore environmental balance by restoring soil health, above and below ground diversity, and water quality. Cotton is also a major oilseed crop through its seed, and contributes to many other industries such as fertiliser, biofuel and fish feed. This method is particularly beneficial in the cultivation of cotton, a crop often associated with high environmental impacts. Incorporating indigenous and traditional farming practices to help regenerative farming is an integral part of the evolution of farming practices. Traditional practices rely less on synthetic fertilisers and shift towards more sustainable practices.

Enhancing Soil Quality

• Soil Health: Regenerative cotton farming promotes practices such as cover cropping, crop rotation, and reduced tillage, which help build healthy soil structure and increase organic matter. In India, regenerative farming is practised as natural farming through the National Mission on Natural Farming. This is low cost regenerative farming practise that restores soil health and can be widely adopted, over subsidised chemical fertilisers that gradually destroy soil quality.

• Soil Biodiversity: By fostering a diverse range of plants and microorganisms, regenerative practices enhance soil biodiversity, leading to improved nutrient cycling and pest management.

• Carbon Sequestration: Healthy soils can capture and store carbon from the atmosphere, contributing to climate change mitigation.

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Improving Air Quality

• Reduced Emissions: Regenerative agriculture minimizes the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, which are significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions.

• Enhanced Photosynthesis: Healthy cotton plants, through improved growth and vitality, can absorb more carbon dioxide, further contributing to cleaner air.

  
  

Protecting Water Quality

• Water Retention: Regenerative practices improve soil structure, allowing for better water infiltration and retention, which reduces runoff and erosion. In addition to this, regenerative agriculture makes better use of crop evapotranspiration, the water that crops draw from the soil and release through their leaves. Healthier soil holds more moisture for longer, which sustains the growth of rainfed crops and helps secure yields. In practice, more water stays in the soil and less is lost to evaporation.

• Reduced Chemical Runoff: By minimizing chemical inputs, regenerative cotton farming decreases the risk of harmful substances contaminating local water sources. This retains the quality of water and reduces associated health risks amongst people residing in the region.

• Watershed Health: Healthy cotton farming practices contribute to the overall health of watersheds, ensuring clean water for both agricultural and community use.

  
  

Countries practising regenerative cotton farming

The largest producers in the World comprise of countries from the Global South which include India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. India produces 20% of the world's cotton, supporting around 6 million cotton farmers and the livelihoods of 40-50 million people in related processing and trade. It is the only country that grows all four cultivated species of cotton. Considering the scale at which cotton is produced and the workers who are dependent on this industry, sustenance of cotton farms is strongly tied to socio-economic factors.

Regenerative cotton farming initiatives are being pushed by companies that work closely with local farmers to innovate and implement hybrid farming practices that incorporate traditional methodologies with newer techniques that enhance yield while restoring quality of soil.

Brands need cotton!

It's not a choice for brands, that's the part that should be concerning, not the production of fast fashion, not the consumption culture, but the overreliance on a water intensive crop. The rate at which cotton is being substituted is not impacting demand across the world, so the shift to certified cotton is the best course of action to preserve what's left of the stressed soil.

A change to preserve and not create the future

Although the changes implemented are yielding positive results, this is only preserving and restoring the natural ecosystem that was disrupted. To create a future that is less reliant on water intensive crops, there is a need for the industry to shift demand. In addition to this, building a robust circular economy is essential for the sustenance of the ecology.