Global fashion retailers plan to increase organic cotton intake in 2013

Market News

Global fashion retailers plan to increase organic cotton intake in 2013

Seventy-one percent of respondents are planning to increase organic cotton for 2013 and that additional sustainable fibers are also slated for growth, according to 2012 Organic Cotton Market Report published by Textile Exchange. The Report shows that C&A, Nudie Jeans, and Puma are prioritizing organic cotton on their preferred fibers lists. C&A and Puma both report that organic cotton provides solid environment credentials specifically in the area of water use. The HIGG Index 1.0 also places organic cotton ahead of conventional options.

C&A tops the top ten lists in the report with 78% growth in 2012 for organic cotton by volume and organic cotton percentage increase over the previous year. This year’s Market Report’s top ten organic cotton users by volume are; C&A, H&M, Nike, Puma, Coop Swiss, Anvil, William-Sonoma, Inditex, Carrefour and Target, in order. The top ten users by volume had to consume over two million pounds of organic cotton to make it onto this list.

Another first is the top ten users by percentage growth. The first time list includes C&A with a growth rate of 78% followed by Nudie Jeans at 69%. Other leaders driving growth include Puma, Otto, Continental Clothing, Anvil, H&M, Bergman Rivera, Inditex, and Nike. "We’re delighted that the Market Report shows that organic cotton credentials have been verified in studies by industry experts. These studies give credibility to the work we have done over the past 11 years to support the growth of the organic cotton market," said LaRhea Pepper, Managing Director at Textile Exchange.

Textile Exchange will host the 2013 Textile Sustainability Conference in Istanbul, Turkey November 11-13, 2013. The title of this year’s conference is, "Sustainability: The Future is Now - Unifying Our Industry through Integration and Collaboration". The event will include top brands and retailers as well as industry authorities in textile sustainability.