Case Study

Primark is a leading global clothing retailer with a global supply chain and a growing retail base. Its business directly contributes to the livelihoods of thousands of farmers and workers across three continents.

As part of their aim to use only sustainably produced cotton, Primark wanted to address challenges in cotton, including:

  • How to build supply at the scale required by Primark
  • How to secure sustainable, long-term change to the lives of the people growing cotton and close the gender gap
  • Establishing more environmentally sound cotton farming practices

our solution

  • Supply chain mapping
  • Strategy development
  • REEL Cotton farming
  • REEL Business
  • REEL Women
  • Tracebale
  • Sourcing programme

After working with Primark on supply chain mapping and strategy development, we started a joint REEL Cotton farming pilot on sustainable farming practices. Starting with 1,250 women in India in 2013, this programme was extended in 2016 to an additional 10,000 farmers over the next six years.

In this REEL Cotton project we work as a partnership between Primark, CottonConnect and the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA).

We are now including our REEL Business programme and REEL Women with these farmers.

Good for business

  • ‍Supporting Primark towards achieving its long term ambition of ensuring all of the cotton in its supply chain is sourced sustainably
  • Providing Primark  with valuable insights into the cotton supply chain with greater traceability, and allowing them to  incorporate cotton grown by these farmers into their supply chain, using CottonConnect traceability tool Tracebale
  • ‍Enabling Primark to address several Sustainable Development Goals, including No Poverty, Gender Equality and Climate action Good for society and environment

After 2 years, farmers have seen*:

  • +211% higher profits
  • +12.6% higher yields
  • -27.9% lower water use
  • -13.5% chemical fertiliser usage
  • -53.5% lower chemical pesticide usage
  • Men are now supportive of the women and their work. They have seen the tangible benefits the programme has made.

*all % are comparisons of project farmers against conventional farmers

‍

“The results have exceeded all our expectations and I’m delighted that we’ll have the opportunity to reach a further 10,000 female farmers over the next six years.”

– Paul Lister Head of Corporate Responsibility, Primark