Family legacies.
Sustainable futures.
This is the story of Cargill cotton.
John Lee
John Lee farms the land that has been in his family since his fourth- generation great- grandfather was freed from slavery.
“My father made sure I understood the importance of keeping this land in our family. The farmer’s focus is always to try and have a farm prepared to pass on to the next generation of farmers. What you do today is important for those farmers who will be farming this land tomorrow.”
Cargill’s Black Farmer Equity Initiative supports cotton farmers like John Lee with access to new markets, capital, and information and technology on the way to building a more equitable agricultural economy.
Nathan Reed
Nathan Reed is reflective as he considers his ripening cotton crop and the children at his side.
“There’s something almost spiritual about farming,” he says.
He participates in the Cargill Regeneratively-sourced Cotton program because it strengthens his crop and his bottom line. He has seen the benefits of reduced tillage and cover crops and he knows it’s an investment in the future. It also means he can contribute a product he’s proud of to a larger supply chain.
“We have the ability to show what we did on this field, what chemicals we sprayed on it, what cover crop we had on it, where that shirt you’re wearing came from.”
He hopes white cotton will burst from bolls on his Arkansas farm for generations to come if he can be a good steward of his land.
“This land is my legacy. It’s very crucial that we preserve it for generations to come.”
Coulibaly Nonlourou Korotoum
Coulibaly Nonlourou Korotoum is a married mother of six from the village of Tokaha in the cotton-growing region of Côte d’Ivoire. Although she has worked alongside her husband for many years, she had never had the opportunity to earn her own money until she became a member of her local Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA).
“My husband and I have been together for 10 years. As we worked together in the field, I never had the opportunity to do a lucrative activity for myself. I would ask my husband to support me, but he refused and insulted me.”
She credits the educational work of the CARE – Cargill – Ivorian Cotton Company partnership with helping her husband and others in the community understand the role of women and providing her and others a hand up by helping to establish the VSLA in Tokaha.
“Today I am the VSLA secretary and entrepreneurship training has opened my eyes. I took out a $30 loan from my group to start a garden with beans, tomatoes and eggplant. Before I was in the dark, and the project brought me out in the light.”
3S cotton
Imagine a ripening field in the Mato Grosso region of Brazil. You may be able to picture acres of plants full of clean, white cotton. With the help of Cargill’s 3S (Sustainably Sourced and Supplied) Responsible Production Verified program you can also see that the farm producing that cotton not only complies with national and state regulations regarding working conditions and worker’s rights, but also that the farm is continuously improving its agricultural practices with on-farm support from a team of independent production experts.
3S cotton helps ensure: sustainable land use including zero deforestation since 2008 and habitat protection; good agricultural practices; positive community relations and human rights protection;and continuous improvement and ongoing measurement of greenhouse gas emissions.
By separating the 3S cotton supply chain, Cargill can trace cotton right back to the plot where it was grown. All production practices are independently verified against FEFAC sustainable guidelines, benchmarked against the FSA/SAI on the silver level, and recommended as DCF Standard by the Consumer Goods Forum.
ReSolu: solutions for regenerative agriculture
Cargill is transforming its agricultural supply chains in Brazil to be deforestation-free by 2025 and by 2030 globally. We are also working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in our supply chain by 30% per ton of product sold by 2030.
To help accelerate the transition in partnership with farmers, Cargill has introduced ReSolu, an end-to-end commercial platform to accelerate the transition to regenerative agriculture within the cotton supply chain. It begins with transitioning degraded pastureland to crop land and continues with implementation of regenerative practices including no-till and direct sowing, implementation of cover crops and/or intercropping, crop rotation and integrated crop/livestock systems.
Trace cotton back to its roots
With almost 160 years of experience and operations in 70 countries around the world, Cargill offers a supply chain like no other, where retailers can connect to the farmers who produced the cotton used in their garments.
Using strong data practices and incorporating sustainability programs to build soil health, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and match consumer expectations, Cargill offers the cotton and the solutions to meet your needs.
Cargill, FibreTrace® give cotton traceability a glow up
Learn how we’re partnering to revolutionize cotton traceability with innovative bioluminescent technology.