NEW YORK, May 4, 2006 - Use of
organically grown cotton by retail titans, fashion designers, and small
and medium-size companies resulted in a dramatic growth in global retail
sales of products containing organic cotton between 2001 and 2005,
according to a new report by the Oakland, Calif.-based nonprofit Organic
Exchange.
Organic production is based on a system of farming that maintains and
replenishes soil fertility without the use of toxic and persistent
pesticides and fertilizers and genetically modified seeds.
During the four-year period, global organic cotton product sales
increased an estimated 35 percent annually, from $245 million in 2001 to
$583 million in 2005. In the U.S., such sales increased 55 percent per
year, from $86 million in 2001 to $275 million in 2005.The author of the
report, "The Organic Exchange Spring 2006 Global Organic Cotton Market
Report," projects global organic cotton product sales to skyrocket to
$2.6 billion by the end of 2008, reflecting a 116 percent average annual
growth rate.
“Consumers are no longer simply eating organically grown food—they are
wearing clothes, using personal care products and outfitting their
kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms with products made with organic
cotton,” says report author Rebecca Calahan Klein, President of
Organic
Exchange, a nonprofit trade association that works to expand the use
of organically grown cotton. “By using organic cotton, companies can
bring added value to their customers and position themselves for long
term growth.”
According to the report, the five brands using the most organic cotton
globally in 2005 are (in order by quantity): Nike (Oregon), Coop
Switzerland and Patagonia (California), Otto (Germany), and Sam's Club/Wal-mart
(Arkansas). In addition, Organic Exchange identified more than 30
companies with growing organic cotton programs in 2005 including
American Apparel (California), Avanti (Japan), Coop Sweden (Sweden),
Earth Creations (Alabama), Eileen Fisher (New York), Gaiam (Colorado),
Hanna Andersson (Oregon), Hess Natur (Germany), H&M (Sweden), Howies
(United Kingdom), IKEA (Sweden), Indigenous Designs (California),
Loomstate (New York), Maggie’s Organics (Michigan), Marks & Spencer
(United Kingdom), Monoprix (France), Mountain Equipment Co-operative
(Canada), Nordstrom (Washington), Norm Thompson/Sahalie (Oregon), Of the
Earth (Oregon), Organic Essentials (Texas), People Tree (United
Kingdom), Prana (California), REI (Washington), Sportif USA (Nevada),
The Timberland Company (New Hampshire), Under the Canopy (Florida),
Whole Foods Market (Texas) and Woolworths South Africa. Organic Exchange
also identified more than 1,200 small and medium sized brands and
retailers offering organic cotton products in North American, European
and Asian consumer markets in 2005.
In addition, designers such as Rogan Gregory, Katharine Hamnett and
Stella McCartney have included organic cotton garments in their
collections, while rock star Bono and his wife Ali Hewson, use organic
cotton in their Edun brand co-created with Gregory and launched in 2005.
All together, brands and retailers incorporated an estimated 9,066
metric tons (19,945,200 pounds or 42,552 bales) of organic cotton fiber
into the products they offered to consumers in 2005.
Organic cotton production and fiber sales to manufacturers also grew
during this time period. Organically grown fiber production increased
from 6,480 metric tons in the 2000-01 harvest to 31,017 metric tons
projected for the 2005-06 harvest, reflecting an average annual growth
rate of 76%. Organic cotton was grown in 22 countries in 2004-05, led by
Turkey (40 percent), India (25 percent), the United States (7.7 percent)
and China (7.3 percent). In 2005-06, these four countries are expected
to grow 79% of the global organic fiber crop. Manufacturer demand for
organic cotton fiber increased an estimated 93% per year during this
time period.
Organic cotton production is expected to grow in the next three years as
existing organic farming projects add more farmers, planned projects
come into production and new projects are started to meet demand in
specific supply chains. To help expand fiber production, retailers,
brands and their business partners are encouraged to work with fiber
producers to plan for future fiber needs, engage in pre-plant planning
and contracting and explore opportunities for using crops grown in
rotation with cotton.