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Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) in India Photo: EqualStock IN · Pexels License · source ↗

Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) in India

Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), rebranded simply as "Better Cotton" in 2022, is the world's largest sustainable-cotton standard. India is BCI's single largest sourcing country — accounting for roughly 23% of all "Better Cotton" produced globally — and runs the largest country-level field programme via implementing partners across Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Scope and launch

BCI was launched in 2009 with founding partners IKEA, H&M, Adidas, IDH and WWF. The Better Cotton Standard System is built on seven Principles & Criteria covering: (i) crop protection minimisation, (ii) water stewardship, (iii) soil health, (iv) biodiversity & land use, (v) fibre quality, (vi) decent work and (vii) management systems. Indian operations are coordinated by Better Cotton's regional office and implemented by partners such as Welspun-Maxx, Lupin Foundation, Ambuja Cement Foundation, Arvind, Cotton Connect and Action for Food Production.

Eligibility and farmer registration

Farmers are organised into Producer Units (typically 700-1,200 farmers per unit, clustered by village/mandal). They are not paid a price premium but receive training and inputs in exchange for adopting the Better Cotton package. Coverage in India has grown from a few pilot units in 2010-11 to approximately 1.5 million licensed farmers in 2022-23.

Benefit structure

Better Cotton is not a price-premium label. The farmer benefit comes from:

  • Reduced input cost via lower insecticide use (Sucking Pest Complex Cotton management with reduced spray frequency).
  • Reduced water use through better irrigation scheduling.
  • Improved bale quality and lower contamination, fetching marginally higher mandi prices.
  • Aggregator linkage to BCI-licensed traders who purchase in bulk.

The premium accrues primarily to the spinner-brand chain: licensed Better Cotton mills earn a "Better Cotton Claim Units" balance that can be sold against brand sourcing pledges.

Implementation in India

Field-level activities include (i) farmer training cycles aligned with the cotton calendar, (ii) bench-marking against state KVK package-of-practice, (iii) on-farm record-keeping with simplified registers, (iv) third-party assurance audits at producer-unit level, (v) integration with FPO-led aggregation where available. Maharashtra and Gujarat lead enrolment; Telangana and AP grew steeply after 2018.

Limitations and critique

BCI has been criticised for (a) being a "minimum standard" with no traceability to bale level prior to 2024 (the new Better Cotton Traceability programme is rolling out), (b) limited price benefit to farmers, (c) overlap with organic and Fairtrade certifications. The shift to mass-balance accounting at scale remains a contested point with retailer brands.

See also Cotton Cci Msp Procurement National, Cotton Zone System Cicr, Cotton Weed Management, Sucking Pest Complex Cotton.

Sources

  1. Better Cotton India operations. Better Cotton.
  2. BCI Principles and Criteria. Better Cotton Standard.
  3. Better Cotton Annual Report. Better Cotton.