Our cotton commitment

Cotton – a natural fabric known for its breathability, durability and softness – is one of the most important materials in our collections. For all its benefits, conventional cotton has a significant impact on the environment, which is why we've committed to sourcing all our cotton from organic, recycled or from the Better Cotton Initiative by 2025.

ORGANIC COTTON

The benefits of organic cotton drive our choice to replace conventional cotton with its organic counterpart. For cotton to be considered organic, it needs to be produced and certified to specific standards – i.e. it must be grown on land free from pesticides and fertilizers for at least three years, without using GMOs (genetically modified organisms). Organic cotton takes significantly less water to grow than conventional cotton and is farmed using crop rotation, which eases pressure on local water resources and promotes soil health.

All our organic cotton is certified by third-party organisations. We are members of GOTS, which is the leading global standard for organic textile fibres, including compliance with specific environmental and social criteria across the supply chain.

RECYCLED COTTON

Recycled cotton re-uses leftover cotton fabric from the textile industry or unwanted garments to make new cotton fibres. By utilising existing resources, this circular approach reduces the demand for new virgin fibres, helping to keep textile waste within the clothing cycle and out of landfill.

We consider a fabric made with recycled cotton to be responsible if it contains at least 20% recycled cotton fibres. This is because the fibres of recycled cotton are shorter than virgin cotton and need to be blended with other fibres to maintain quality and durability.

BCI COTTON

On our road to sourcing better cotton by 2025, our preferred fibres are organic or recycled followed by Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) cotton, an initiative that we have been supporting since 2018.

The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) is a global not-for-profit organisation. It aims to make global cotton production better for the people who produce it, better for the environment it grows in and better for the sector's future. Whenever you purchase a cotton garment from Scotch & Soda, you're supporting the Better Cotton Initiative. You're also supporting BCI farmers, who use water efficiently, care for the health of natural habitats, reduce their use of harmful chemicals and respect the rights and wellbeing of their workers.

OUR PROGRESS

Last year we increased the percentage of styles made with organic cotton by 22%.
We've been a partner of BCI since 2018.
Denim is a high cotton product and a core style within our collections.In 2020, we joined several other denim brands and suppliers in a landmark move – The Denim Deal – which is a collective move to use recycled fibres in denim production.

SOCIAL COMPLIANCE

In 2013, we became a member of the Amfori Business Social Compliance Initiative (Amfori BSCI), the leading global business association for open and sustainable trade. All our suppliers are required to comply with our Code of Conduct. This includes social standards in line with the International Labour Organisation (ILO), in which forced labour is not tolerated and we take a firm stand against any reports of this.

For the year 2021, the majority of the styles that are made with cotton come from three countries of origin: China, Turkey and India. Cotton represents 66% of the styles used in our collections.

China: 49% of our total usage comes from China, from two provinces: Shandong and Heibei. 34% is organically grown and 66% is conventionally grown, from which 67% is certified by the Better Cotton Initiative.

Turkey: 36% of our total usage comes from Turkey, from the Aegean region. 64% is organically grown and 36% is conventionally grown, from which 38% is certified by the Better Cotton Initiative.

India: 15% of our total usage comes from India, from three regions: Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra. 66% is organically grown and 34% is conventionally grown, from which 58% is certified by the Better Cotton Initiative.

We require all our contractual suppliers to not use cotton from areas that are considered high risk for child labour or forced labour and show documentation to that effect. We also work with our suppliers to trace our cotton supply from raw material to final product to increase transparency across our supply chain.

As a member of the Better Cotton Initiative, we follow and support their recommendations and expertise to improve the effectiveness of the system in identifying, preventing, mitigating and remediating forced labour risks worldwide.