sustainability
the largest producer of BCI cotton in the world
World leader in sustainable cotton production and licensed by the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), Brazil increased its share in the amount of cotton approved by the Swiss NGO from 31% in 2018 to 36% in 2019. The country has ranked number one in the world since 2013.
In the Brazilian protocol, 178 certification items are required by the country’s labor and environmental legislation, which is considered to be one of the most complete and rigid in the world.
Responsible Brazilian Cotton Program (ABR)
Created by Abrapa, the ABR program certifies farms that are committed to a strict protocol of good agricultural, environmental, social, and economic practices. The program has operated in tandem with the BCI since 2013, with both programs using unified protocols.
timeline
2005 |
Regional initiative in the state of Mato Grosso | |
2009 |
Certification program is implemented across the country | |
2012 |
Creation of a single protocol for the country (ABR – Responsible Brazilian Cotton) | |
2013 |
ABR unifies programs with the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) | |
2020 |
Launch of the ABR-UBA program (Responsible Brazilian Cotton – Cotton Ginning Plant)
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today |
Record volume of certified cotton at 2.3 million tons
Brazil supplies 36% of the world’s BCI cotton |
sustainability pillars
Buying Brazilian cotton means collaborating for a fairer and more balanced system of relationships between man, the economy and the environment. The ABR certification ensures respect for three essential pillars of sustainability:
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Brazilian cotton preserves the environment: it does not contribute to deforestion, it promotes good agricultural practices and has an effective program for the intelligent use of water. |
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Production respects any and all systems involving companies and institutions, working for dignified and bilateral relations between all parties. Employees are valued and slave and child labor are fiercely fought. |
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Production promotes fair economic practices and contributes to the development of its market ecosystem and of the country. |
Under these pillars, eight evaluation criteria have been established:
1employment contract
2ban on child labor
3ban on slave/slave-like work or work performed in degrading or undignified conditions
4freedom to unionize
5ban on discrimination
6safety, occupational health, and the work environment
7environmental performance
8good agricultural practices
Criteria 2 and 3 entail mandatory compliance.
What does sustainable Brazilian cotton deliver?
| 92% does not use irrigation, grows on rainwater alone. |  |
| 1st in yield without irrigation in the world. | |
| varied production matrix There is no monoculture. Cotton producers also grow soybeans, corn, millet, sorghum and other crops. |
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| 75% of the national production is certified with the best sustainability practices. | |
| only country in the world to have certification for Cotton Ginning Plants, starting in 2020. | |
| development and social transformation in communities In 20 years, producing regions have moved from the very low to the high end of the MHDI range (Municipal Human Development Index). Comparative examples: Nova Mutum (Mato Grosso) jumped from 0.432 to 0.758, and Barreiras (Bahia) from 0.408 to 0.721 between 1991 and 2010. |
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certification
Certification is the result of three main steps:
- diagnosis of the production unit,
- correction of possible non-compliances and
- auditing. Farms and ginning plants are visited individually by independent auditors with international recognition *, in all ABR crop seasons.
The ABR, like the BCI, is based on the continuous improvement of good social, environmental, and economic practices in cotton production units.
* Certifying bodies licensed by Abrapa in the 2019/2020 crop: ABNT (Brazilian Association of Technical Standards), Bureau Veritas and GenesisGroup Certifications.
