The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture and the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol announced a new agreement today that formalizes a partnership between the two organizations to document and accelerate sustainable outcomes for U.S. cotton production. The new partnership strengthens the ability of cotton growers and the value chain to drive continuous improvement, combining two of the industry’s leading sustainability assessment frameworks.
“Field to Market is pleased to join forces with the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol to enable the industry to meet its sustainability goals and credibly communicate results,” said Rod Snyder, president of Field to Market. “Through this collaboration, Field to Market is committed to scaling access to our sustainability tools and analytics and enabling growers and the broader cotton value chain to measure environmental outcomes while identifying opportunities for improvement.”
In a memorandum of understanding signed this week, Field to Market and the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol have committed to:
- Scale grower access to sustainability measurement by enabling farmers enrolled in the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol to utilize metrics from Field to Market’s Fieldprint® Platform, allowing growers to analyze the connection between agronomic practices and sustainability outcomes;
- Track U.S. cotton’s sustainability journey through continued publication of Field to Market’s National Indicators Report, which will communicate progress against the industry’s established environmental targets; and
- Foster an increased level of collaboration by participating in each other’s meetings and work sessions.
Together, Field to Market and the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol will assess progress against the U.S. cotton industry’s established environmental targets. By 2025, the industry aims to achieve targeted reductions in soil loss, water use, greenhouse gas emissions, and energy use, alongside increased land use efficiency and soil carbon. The Trust Protocol completed a successful project pilot in 2019, and has begun fully implementing its programs in 2020, with a goal to enroll at least 500 producers by December 2020.
“Sustainability is a growing priority for the U.S. cotton value chain, from consumers, brands, retailers to textile manufacturers,” said Ken Burton, Executive Director of the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol. “The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol looks forward to collaborating with Field to Market to scale our collective sustainability impact, meet our industry targets and strengthen the sustainability of U.S. Cotton.”
About Field to Market
Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture brings together a diverse group of grower organizations; agribusinesses; food, beverage, restaurant and retail companies; conservation groups; universities and public sector partners to focus on defining, measuring and advancing the sustainability of food, fiber and fuel production. Field to Market is comprised of nearly 140 members representing all facets of the U.S. agricultural supply chain, with members employing more than 5 million people and representing combined revenues totaling over $1.5 trillion.
About The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol
The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol is a cotton production assessment system established by U.S. cotton producers and industry organizations to provide a mechanism by which U.S. cotton producers can assess and verify their current production practices and measure their progress toward long-term sustainability goals. The Trust Protocol is managed and implemented by a single member LLC governed by producers, brands/retailers, conservation and wildlife civil societies, ginners, merchants, cooperatives, textile manufacturers, cottonseed crushers/handlers, and cotton warehouses. The Trust Protocol’s IT development and support is provided by The Seam, a Memphis-based technology company who also is a qualified data management partner with Field to Market.