About this report, Methodology, Global organic cotton production
Executive summary
During the past four years, the organic cotton market has become more global, with improved fiber quality, greater production
and trade, more integrated supply chains and rapid growth in demand. Expansion in organic fiber production is expected in
the coming years.
The Organic Exchange Fiber Report Spring 2006 analyzes changes in organic cotton production between the 2000-01 harvest
and the 2004-05 harvest, reports projected production and ending stocks for the 2005-06 harvest and provides initial thoughts
about fiber production for the 2006-07 harvest and beyond.
A look at global organic cotton production
The global organic cotton fiber supply has increased 292%[1] since the 2000-01 harvest of 6,480 metric tons to 25,394
metric tons during the 2004-05 crop year. Supplies are projected to grow to 31,017 metric tons
(68,237,400 pounds or 142,161 bales) by the end of the 2005-06 harvest, reflecting an annual growth rate of 22%.
During the 2004-05 harvest, cotton was produced in 22 countries with Turkey growing 40%, India, 25%, the
United States 7.7% and China, 7.3% respectively. In 2005-06, these four countries combined are projected to
produce 79% of the global organic cotton fiber crop.
Small amounts of fiber stocks were available at the end of the 2003-04 harvest, and sales from the 2004-05
harvest were strong, with 93% of the 2004-05 crop sold by the end of February 2006.
All existing organic cotton producer groups are expected to maintain or slightly expand production for the 2006-07 harvest,
and a small number of new projects growing cotton for the general market are expected to begin production in 2006-07.
Additional projects which are growing cotton for specific supply chains are expected to come on line beginning in the
2007-2008 harvest.
The scale of the organic fiber supply expansion will be determined in large measure by:
- the strength of demand in the market overall
- the depth of commitment, planning and contracting that occur within specific supply chains and
- the support available to farming projects to address critical financial, technical and management challenges facing
them as they start up and/or expand operations.
Recommendations and next steps
To support sustainable expansion in the global organic cotton fiber supply, the Organic Exchange recommends that brands
and retailers, their manufacturing partners and farmers and organizations interested in organic agriculture work together to:
- develop dedicated supply chains, with high levels of communication, planning and support between manufacturers and retailers,
their business partners and farmers which help existing projects and new projects develop in a more sustainable manner.
This will help ensure that the right qualities and quantities of fiber are produced to meet the needs of specific brands and retailers.
- explore innovative ways of associating with farm projects and farmers, through profit sharing, joint ownership with farmers in the
supply chain, forward contracting with pre-financing arrangements, etc, to ensure farmers enjoy fair prices, incomes and returns in the
organic cotton sector and are able to finance development and production growth on their own terms.
- develop the general market where higher rates of contracted or committed planting occurs. Merchant and brokers and
brands can help reduce the market risk faced by farmers by making pre-plant commitments and/or forward contracts with
organic cotton projects. These transactions should demonstrate transparency and fair returns to farmers.
- increase investments from financial institutions, government and philanthropic institutions for research and technical support
for existing programs and the development of new projects in order to place farmers in dedicated chains and/or in the general
market to expand production in a sustainable way.
Summary Data Tables
Summary Table 1: Organic cotton production worldwide by country, 1992-2001 (in metric tons)
[1] Growth rate was calculated by the following formula: Production of 2004-5 less the 2000-1
production divided by 2000-2 production.
|
Country
|
1992-1993
|
1993-1994
|
1994-1995
|
1995-1996
|
1996-1997
|
1997-1998
|
1998-1999
|
1999-2000
|
2000-2001
|
|
Argentina
|
-
|
-
|
75
|
75
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Australia
|
500
|
500
|
750
|
400
|
300
|
300
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Brazil
|
-
|
1
|
5
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
5
|
10
|
20
|
|
Benin
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1
|
5
|
20
|
20
|
30
|
|
Egypt
|
50
|
150
|
600
|
650
|
625
|
500
|
350
|
200
|
200
|
|
Greece
|
-
|
-
|
300
|
150
|
125
|
100
|
75
|
50
|
50
|
|
India
|
200
|
250
|
400
|
925
|
850
|
1,000
|
825
|
1,150
|
1,000
|
|
Israel
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
50
|
50
|
20
|
140
|
180
|
530
|
|
Kenya
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
-
|
|
Mozambique
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
100
|
75
|
50
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Nicaragua
|
-
|
-
|
20
|
20
|
20
|
20
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Paraguay
|
-
|
100
|
75
|
50
|
50
|
50
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Peru
|
200
|
675
|
900
|
900
|
600
|
650
|
650
|
500
|
550
|
|
Senegal
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1
|
10
|
10
|
50
|
125
|
200
|
|
Tanzania
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
10
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
200
|
250
|
|
Turkey
|
125
|
200
|
600
|
725
|
850
|
1,000
|
1,200
|
2,000
|
1,750
|
|
Uganda
|
-
|
-
|
25
|
75
|
300
|
450
|
250
|
200
|
275
|
|
USA
|
1,000
|
1,950
|
2,400
|
3,350
|
1,550
|
1,300
|
1,900
|
2,900
|
1,625
|
|
Zimbabwe
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1
|
5
|
5
|
-
|
|
Total in
Metric Tons
|
2,075
|
3,826
|
6,150
|
7,482
|
5,507
|
5,562
|
5,575
|
7,545
|
6,480
|
|
Total in Bales
|
9,510
|
17,535
|
28,188
|
34,292
|
25,240
|
25,493
|
25,552
|
34,581
|
29,700
|
Source: Ton (2002) updated in Ferrigno etal., 2006
Conversion Note: 2,200 pounds are in a metric ton, and 480 pounds in a bale.
Summary Table 2: Organic cotton stocks
and fiber production (in metric tons) for the 2004-2005 growing season, by region
|
Region
|
Beginning stock
Aug 1
|
Harvest
|
Sales/
commitments
|
Ending
stock
|
% of Production
|
|
Middle East (Turkey,Israel)
|
0.00
|
10,896.00
|
10,896.00
|
0.00
|
42.91%
|
|
SE Asia
(Pakistan/India)
|
930.00
|
6,920.00
|
5,813.00
|
2,037.00
|
27.25%
|
|
OtherAfrica
|
400.00
|
2,117.38
|
1,713.00
|
804.38
|
8.34%
|
|
North America (USA)
|
0.00
|
1,968.00
|
1,968.00
|
0.00
|
7.75%
|
|
China
|
20.00
|
1,870.00
|
1,470.00
|
420.00
|
7.36%
|
|
Latin America
|
134.00
|
883.00
|
845.00
|
172.00
|
3.48%
|
|
Africa CFA zone
|
203.50
|
435.00
|
570.00
|
68.50
|
1.71%
|
|
North Africa
|
0.00
|
240.00
|
240.00
|
0.00
|
0.95%
|
|
CIS (Commonwealth of
Independent States)
|
0.00
|
65.00
|
65.00
|
0.00
|
0.26%
|
|
EU,Central
Europe
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
Central
America
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
East Asia andAustralia
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
in Metric Tons
|
1,687.50
|
25,394.38
|
23,580.00
|
3,501.88
|
100.00%
|
|
Total
In Bales
|
7,734.37
|
116,391.90
|
108,075.00
|
16,050.28
|
|
Conversion Note: 2,200 pounds are in a metric ton, and 480 pounds in a bale.
Countries Growing Organic Cotton in 2004-2005: Benin, Burkina Faso, Kenya, Malawi, Mail, Senegal, Tanzania,
Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, India, Pakistan, Israel, Egypt, Nepal, Kyrgyzstan, China, Paraguay, Peru,Turkey
and the USA. (See Table 3 for details.)
Summary Table 3: Projected organic cotton stocks and fiber production (in metric tons) for 2005-6
growing season, by region: ending stock as of February 2006.
|
By region, 2005-2006
|
Beginning stock
August 1
|
Harvest
|
Sales/
Commitments
|
Stock on Feb.
2006
|
% of
Production
|
|
SE Asia (Pakistan/India)
|
2,037.00
|
10,834.86
|
11,835.00
|
1,036.86
|
34.93%
|
|
Middle East (Turkey,
Israel)
|
0.00
|
10,760.00
|
10,700.00
|
60.00
|
34.69%
|
|
China
|
420.00
|
2,531.60
|
2,630.00
|
321.60
|
8.16%
|
|
OtherAfrica
|
804.38
|
2,469.60
|
2,859.00
|
414.98
|
7.96%
|
|
North America (USA)
|
0.00
|
1,867.64
|
1,868.00
|
0.00
|
6.02%
|
|
Latin America
|
172.00
|
1,188.00
|
1,035.00
|
325.00
|
3.83%
|
|
Africa CFA zone
|
68.50
|
1,014.95
|
1,049.00
|
34.45
|
3.27%
|
|
North Africa
|
0.00
|
240.00
|
240.00
|
0.00
|
0.77%
|
|
CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States)
|
0.00
|
110.00
|
110.00
|
0.00
|
0.35%
|
|
EU,Central Europe
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
Central America
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
East Asia andAustralia
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total in Metric Tons
|
3,501.88
|
31,016.65
|
32,326.00
|
2,192.89
|
100.00%
|
|
Total in Bales
|
16,050.28
|
142,159.65
|
148,160.83
|
10,050.74
|
|
top
About this report
The Organic Exchange Spring 2006 Fiber Report provides a first look at organic cotton production globally since the
PAN UK survey of 2000/1 (Ton, 2002). This report contains production information on 53 organic cotton projects in
22 countries as well as details of any available fiber stocks and predicted harvests for 2005/6. In addition, it provides
contact information for each project.The next Fiber Report will add in data from merchants and spinners on their
available stocks, as well as an update on production predictions for the next harvest.
Some brief notes on fiber types are included in this report. Future updates to this report will detail fiber qualities
in more detail, as well as areas, average yields, etc. As Organic Exchange works with projects on
their growth plans, development potential and supply chain maps, this data will be added to the Fiber Report to present a more comprehensive picture of organic cotton production and future potential.
Methodology
Data collection process
This report relies to a large degree on data provided by producing groups and farming projects, and on third
parties including NGOs and private companies supporting projects in producing regions, academics, certifiers and,
where available, government agencies.
The data is for now limited to volumes of fiber produced in 2004-2005, predicted harvests for the 2005-2006 cropping
season, fiber sold or committed through contracts, and available stocks of fiber as of February 2006.
Historical data has not been included except as it is available from the last published, verified figures published in 2002.
Data was collected between June 2005 and January 2006. As far as possibly, all data and reports were re-checked in
December 2005-February 2006.
Data was gathered through phone calls, emails and questionnaires. Sources included producer groups, farmer
representatives, NGOs, and buyers, with producer groups being the main source of information. Details about the
organizations contributing data to this report and a copy of the survey questions are included in the appendices to this report.
Data for most projects come directly from the project itself. In some cases, additional third party verification is available,
while third party only is available for some. So far data has been verified for 27 projects out of 53 known projects by reliable
or third party as well as project sources. Twenty five other projects' data is self-reported (but may not be the most recent) or
from a reliable third party source; There are information gaps in Turkey, where different production totals are reported '
(only verified data is included here), Egypt, where more production may occur than reported here; projects are also rumoured
but unverified in Brazil and Kenya (where known projects are beginning production). Projects unknown so far have also been
identified in Australia and Peru.
The list below shows the projects surveyed and the completeness and degree of verification of data by region.
Africa: of 15 projects inAfrica, 13 replied with production, stock and forecast figures. 4 also had additional data published
on the Internet. There was one non-response and data for one project was only partially verified through an online source.
India: of 11 projects in India, data was received for 10 via ETC India/ICCOA in November 2005. Eight projects re-confirmed or
amended data again in January 2006. One project's data was also verified by a commercial source (buying from the project).
There was one non-respondent.
Turkey: Turkey has been one of the most difficult countries from which to obtain reliable and comprehensive data. Beyond those
three projects known to and reporting data to Organic Exchange, other production is thought to occur but sources are not known.
Total production data provided by one Turkish academic specialist and data reported by the Turkish Agricultural Ministry
(MARA) are higher than data collected by Organic Exchange. It is hoped that further investigation will lead to better information
in future and direct contact with as yet unknown organic cotton projects.
Latin America: data has been verified by 2 out 3 projects inParaguay; the missing project sells to one of the known projects.
In Peru, data has been verified by two projects. One partial set of data has been received from another project, and is
expected from a fourth. One new project has been identified but no data received or counted so far.
USA: The largest organic cotton project in theUS has confirmed data. Of the other individual farmers known to be growing organic
cotton, none have confirmed data. These other farms are estimates based on figures compiled and reported from
previous surveys by the US Organic Trade Association.
China: Data has been verified by one project. Data is partially confirmed by one other. Data from the third has been promised
but not yet received.
Middle-East, CIS (Commonwealth ofIndependent States) and North Africa: data has been confirmed by project staff and Internet sources forKyrgyzstan. Data was received in June 2005 and updated in February 2006 forPakistan. No confirmation has been received to date forEgypt and given conflicting data,Egypt appears to have other projects than Sekem that are certified. Data from Isreal has been verified.
Geographical divisions
Production regions are based on the regional groupings used by the International Cotton Advisory Committee's (ICAC) in 'Cotton:
Review of the World Situation'[i].
Baseline
The baseline used in this report is the 2002 report published by the Pesticide Action NetworkUK (Ton, 2002), the last published,
authoritative survey of global organic cotton production. Some data on area under organic cotton is also reported by FiBL (2006),
but this data is less recent than that used here. A wider range of countries producing organic cotton is also reported by FiBL,
but Organic Exchange so far has not received verification on these countries.
Authority
This report mostly contains data collected directly from farm projects and during visits to some projects by Organic Exchange staff.
Because of rapidly changing market conditions, some data sources, production projects and numbers may have been missed.
Some areas such as Turkey andEgypt seem likely to have higher production than Organic Exchange has been able to verify.
Data gaps or concerns are highlighted in the narrative.
Enhancements planned for future reports
Future editions of this report will attempt to fill in the gaps of what has been happening between then and now, and add data on
areas under production, ginning outturn, farmer numbers and some historical and other information on the producer projects and
contexts. In future reports, data will be further verified by cross-referencing with other sources including certification agencies,
cotton traders, experts in the field and public sources such as government agencies.
top
Global Organic Fiber Production
Organic cotton fiber production has gone through several phases of development in the past fifteen years.These included
enthusiastic growth in the early 1990s, re-orientation in the early to mid 1990s, then the laying of a more structured and
professional approach in the late 1990s and early 2000s (see Ton, 2002, Myers and Stolton 1999). The current phase of
development shows increased organic cotton production and trade, improved supply chains and fiber quality and rapid growth
in demand.
Baseline fiber production data
Early organic fiber production began in the USA andTurkey in the late 1980s (Ton 2002). These were soon followed by
production in Africa (Egypt,Uganda), India, andPeru. Some production was initiated by companies seeking to create new
models of doing business; some were started by farmers seeking new markets and better ways of living; some were started as
development projects by NGOs.
Table 1: Organic cotton production worldwide by country, 1992-2001 (in metric tons)
|
Country
|
1992-1993
|
1993-1994
|
1994-1995
|
1995-1996
|
1996-1997
|
1997-1998
|
1998-1999
|
1999-2000
|
2000-2001
|
|
Argentina
|
-
|
-
|
75
|
75
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Australia
|
500
|
500
|
750
|
400
|
300
|
300
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Brazil
|
-
|
1
|
5
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
5
|
10
|
20
|
|
Benin
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1
|
5
|
20
|
20
|
30
|
|
Egypt
|
50
|
150
|
600
|
650
|
625
|
500
|
350
|
200
|
200
|
|
Greece
|
-
|
-
|
300
|
150
|
125
|
100
|
75
|
50
|
50
|
|
India
|
200
|
250
|
400
|
925
|
850
|
1,000
|
825
|
1,150
|
1,000
|
|
Israel
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
50
|
50
|
20
|
140
|
180
|
530
|
|
Kenya
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
-
|
|
Mozambique
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
100
|
75
|
50
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Nicaragua
|
-
|
-
|
20
|
20
|
20
|
20
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Paraguay
|
-
|
100
|
75
|
50
|
50
|
50
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Peru
|
200
|
675
|
900
|
900
|
600
|
650
|
650
|
500
|
550
|
|
Senegal
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1
|
10
|
10
|
50
|
125
|
200
|
|
Tanzania
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
10
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
200
|
250
|
|
Turkey
|
125
|
200
|
600
|
725
|
850
|
1,000
|
1,200
|
2,000
|
1,750
|
|
Uganda
|
-
|
-
|
25
|
75
|
300
|
450
|
250
|
200
|
275
|
|
USA
|
1,000
|
1,950
|
2,400
|
3,350
|
1,550
|
1,300
|
1,900
|
2,900
|
1,625
|
|
Zimbabwe
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1
|
5
|
5
|
-
|
|
Total in
Metric Tons
|
2,075
|
3,826
|
6,150
|
7,482
|
5,507
|
5,562
|
5,575
|
7,545
|
6,480
|
|
Total in Bales
|
9,510
|
17,535
|
28,188
|
34,292
|
25,240
|
25,493
|
25,552
|
34,581
|
29,700
|
Source:Ton (2002) updated in Ferrigno et al., 2006
Conversion Note: 2,200 pounds are in a Metric Ton, and 480 pounds in a bale
Organic fiber production 2004-05 cropping season and projections for 2005-06 cropping season
The tables below reflect data collected by Organic Exchange regarding organic fiber production and sales from the 2004-05
harvest and projected production and sales from the 2005-06 harvest.
Table 2: Organic cotton stocks and fiber production (in metric tons) for the 2004-2005 growing season, by region[1]
|
Region
|
Beginning stock Aug 1
|
Harvest
|
Sales/
Commitments
|
Ending
stock
|
Percentage of Production
|
|
Middle East (Turkey,Israel)
|
0.00
|
10,896.00
|
10,896.00
|
0.00
|
42.91%
|
|
SE Asia
(Pakistan/India)
|
930.00
|
6,920.00
|
5,813.00
|
2,037.00
|
27.25%
|
|
OtherAfrica
|
400.00
|
2,117.38
|
1,713.00
|
804.38
|
8.34%
|
|
North America (USA)
|
0.00
|
1,968.00
|
1,968.00
|
0.00
|
7.75%
|
|
China
|
20.00
|
1,870.00
|
1,470.00
|
420.00
|
7.36%
|
|
Latin America
|
134.00
|
883.00
|
845.00
|
172.00
|
3.48%
|
|
Africa CFA zone
|
203.50
|
435.00
|
570.00
|
68.50
|
1.71%
|
|
North Africa
|
0.00
|
240.00
|
240.00
|
0.00
|
0.95%
|
|
CIS (Commonwealth of
Independent States)
|
0.00
|
65.00
|
65.00
|
0.00
|
0.26%
|
|
EU,Central
Europe
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
Central
America
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
East Asia andAustralia
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
0.00%
|
|
Total
in Metric Tons
|
1,687.50
|
25,394.38
|
23,580.00
|
3,501.88
|
100.00%
|
|
Total
In Bales
|
7,734.00
|
116,391.00
|
108,075.00
|
16,050.28
|
|
Table 3: Organic cotton stocks and fiber production by country (in metric tons) for the 2004-2005 growing season
|
Fiber production
|
Beginning stock
Aug 1
|
Harvest
|
Sales/
Commitments
|
Ending stock
|
Percentage of Production
|
Fiber type
|
|
Benin
|
199
|
67
|
230
|
36
|
0.26%
|
Medium
|
|
Burkina Faso
|
0
|
45
|
30
|
15
|
0.18%
|
Medium
|
|
Kenya
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
2
|
0.01%
|
Medium
|
|
| |
