Het Trust Protocol brengt meetbare en verifieerbare doelen en metingen naar verantwoorde katoenproductie

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – (BUSINESS WIRE) – Vanaf vandaag kunnen merken en retailers zich aansluiten bij het U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, een nieuw systeem voor verantwoord geteelde katoen dat jaarlijkse gegevens zal verstrekken voor zes duurzaamheidsgebieden in overeenstemming met de VN-duurzaamheidsdoelstellingen. Deze jaar-op-jaar gegevens, die voor het eerst beschikbaar zijn, zullen merken en retailers in staat stellen om de voortgang bij het nakomen van duurzaamheidsverplichtingen beter te meten.

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“Een van onze doelen bij het ontwikkelen van het Trust Protocol is om merken en retailers meer vertrouwen te geven wanneer ze Amerikaans katoen in hun inkoopmix opnemen”, zegt Ken Burton, Executive Director van het U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol. “Deelnemende merken en retailers zullen nu meetbare vooruitgang kunnen aantonen bij het verkleinen van hun ecologische voetafdruk en het behalen van duurzaamheidsdoelstellingen.”

With U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, Brands and Retailers Can Now Source U.S. Cotton with More Confidence

The Trust Protocol brings quantifiable and verifiable goals and measurements to responsible cotton production

MEMPHIS, Tenn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Starting today, brands and retailers can join the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, a new system for responsibly grown cotton that will provide annual data for six areas of sustainability in line with the U.N. Sustainability Goals. This year-over-year data, available for the first time, will allow brands and retailers to better measure progress towards meeting sustainability commitments.

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(Graphic: Business Wire)

“One of our goals in developing the Trust Protocol is to give brands and retailers greater confidence when including U.S. cotton in their sourcing mix,” said Ken Burton, Executive Director of the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol. “Participating brands and retailers will now be able to demonstrate measurable progress in reducing their environmental footprint and in achieving sustainability targets.”

The Trust Protocol underpins and verifies sustainability progress through sophisticated data collection and independent third-party verification. By working with Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture and Control Union Certifications North America, the Trust Protocol enables brands and retailers to better track the cotton entering their supply chain. Brands who become members of the Trust Protocol will have access to aggregate year-over-year data on water use, greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, soil carbon and land use efficiency.

“At Levi Strauss & Co., the quality and sustainability of the cotton we use is critical to our business and important to our customers. We are deeply committed to sourcing sustainable cotton and reducing water usage, carbon emissions, and chemical usage,” said Liza Schillo, Senior Manager, Global Sustainability Integration, Levi Strauss & Co. and Trust Protocol Board Member. “We are therefore in strong support of the introduction of standards – including the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol – that champion sustainably grown cotton and drive wider adoption over the long-term of sustainable cultivation practices.”

The Trust Protocol is a complement to existing sustainability programs and is designed from the ground up to fit the unique cotton mass-growing environment of the United States. “We are engaged in an open dialogue with existing standards in the cotton industry, and open to are exploring future collaboration,” added Burton.

Last month, the Trust Protocol was added to Textile Exchange’s list of 36 preferred fibers and materials that more than 170 participating brands and retailers can select from as part of Textile Exchange’s Material Change Index program.

35 Years of Continuous Improvements

Over the past 35 years, U.S. cotton has made significant improvements in growing cotton responsibly.

To continue the progress, the Trust Protocol has ambitious national goals for 2025. By this date, the Trust Protocol aims to have more than half of all U.S. cotton production included in the program.

“Achieving a transition towards agricultural sustainability requires broad public and private partnerships and a vital part of my work at The Nature Conservancy includes looking at ways to collaborate with key agricultural stakeholders,” said Dr. Kris Johnson, Deputy Director of Agriculture, The Nature Conservancy, North American Region and U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol Board Member. “Informed by science-based targets, the Trust Protocol provides evidence of and encourages continuous improvements in U.S. cotton production.”

For more information, please visit https://TrustUsCotton.org, and visit us on social media.

https://twitter.com/trustuscotton

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https://www.linkedin.com/company/responsibleuscotton/

About the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol

In a period of ever greater supply chain scrutiny and a growing demand for transparency, the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol will set a standard for more sustainably grown cotton. It brings quantifiable and verifiable goals and measurement to the issue of responsibly-grown cotton production and drives continuous improvement in key sustainability metrics.

The Trust Protocol underpins and verifies U.S. cotton’s progress through sophisticated data collection and independent third-party verification. Choosing Trust Protocol cotton will give brands and retailers the critical assurances they need that the cotton fiber element of their supply chain is more sustainably grown with lower environmental and social risk. Brands and retailers will gain access to U.S. cotton with sustainability credentials proven via Field to Market, measured via the Fieldprint Calculator and verified with Control Union Certifications.

The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol is overseen by a multi-stakeholder Board of Directors comprised of representatives from brands and retailers, civil society and independent sustainability experts as well as the cotton-growing industry, including growers, ginners, merchants, wholesalers and cooperatives, mills and cottonseed handlers.

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Contacts

Avra Lorrimer, Avra.Lorrimer@hkstrategies.com; +1 347-685-5745