Better Cotton Impact Report 2020 is now available, showing significant benefits for those countries and farmers who joined the Better Cotton Initiative. The impact is what we all want to see in sustainability. The Better Cotton program was directly implemented in 12 countries, including China, India, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Turkey. The report comprises the environmental and economic indicators. The environmental factors included: pesticides, organic and synthetic fertilizers, biopesticides and water consumption. The economic factors included: yield and profitabililty.
Among the 12 countries, Pakistan has shown better improvement through these programs. For example:
Water consumption: Pakistan reduced water consumption to -11% m3/hectare, while India and Turkey reduced water consumption by -10 and -2%, respectively.
Yield: Pakistan showed an improved yield with a value of +12% lint mt/ hectare, while India, Turkey, and China showed a yield increase of +9%, +5%, and +10% lint mt/ hectare, respectively.
Profit: Regarding profit increase, Pakistan again outperformed other countries with Better Cotton Initiative. It showed a significant increase in profit by +35% net income/hectare, while India, Turkey, and China showed +18%, +19%, and +17% increase in profit, respectively.
In Pakistan, Better Cotton Farmers reported 12% higher yields and 35% higher profits than Compared Farmers, largely due to their improved knowledge of seed selection, crop protection, and soil health. Despite the challenges, Better Cotton Farmers leveraged the knowledge gained through their Better Cotton training to use 12% fewer pesticides than Comparison Farmers. In particular, Better Cotton Farmers learned to only spray pesticides when pest levels reached a certain threshold, apply biopesticides such as natural neem oil instead of chemical pesticides, and plant a diverse range of plants to encourage and preserve beneficial insects.
