Climate Smart Cotton Program Benefits

Recognizing the risks posed by carbon emissions, improving carbon footprint is a key focus area in the coming years. U.S. cotton farmers and brands and retailers can play a vital role in achieving this goal through the U.S. Climate Smart Cotton Program.

Benefits

Growers

The Climate Smart Cotton Program presents a transformative opportunity for U.S. cotton growers, offering a range of benefits that go beyond sustainability. The shared goal of the program is to support farmers in adopting and implementing sustainable practices that benefit both their operations and the environment.

Technical and Financial Support

The program offers critical guidance and resources to help growers successfully implement Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) practices.

Cost Saving

CSA practice implementation can provide growers with reduced input costs, allowing them to optimize their operations and improve profitability.

Additional Revenue

Enable opportunity to create and sell carbon insets to brands and retailers who are members of the Trust Protocol.

Enhanced Resilience

Growers can increase their resilience to drought and floods, enabling them to navigate climate conditions more effectively.

Improved Soil Health

Implementing CSA practices such as planting cover crops, reduced tillage, and nutrient management contribute to improved soil health, enhancing its fertility, structure, and long-term productivity.

Yield Improvements

By implementing CSA practices, growers have the potential to achieve yield improvements, enhancing their productivity and crop quality.

Reduced Erosion

CSA practices can also aid with decreasing soil erosion, preserving soil quality and preventing sediment runoff into water bodies.

Nutrient Use Efficiency

Adopting advanced nutrient management practices promoted by the program can aid in enhanced nutrient use efficiency, optimizing fertilizer inputs and minimizing environmental impacts.

To apply for the Climate Smart Cotton Program growers must first be enrolled in the Trust Protocol.

Benefits

Brands and Retailers

For brands and retailers, the program aims to help support efforts to improve their greenhouse gas emissions reductions and reporting.

Sustainable Fiber Sourcing

The Climate Smart Cotton Program launched in June of 2023, with the ambition to produce over 4 million bales of Climate Smart Cotton™ during the program’s five years.

Emission Reductions

The program also aims to reduce CO2e emissions by 1.14 million metric tons through the promotion of practice adoption that decreases GHG emissions, stores more carbon and water in the soil, and improves soil and ecosystem function. This will contribute to a more sustainable cotton industry and a healthier environment.

Scope 3 Emissions Reporting

The opportunity to purchase verified insets from growers participating in the Climate Smart Cotton Program as the program matures that can be used against Scope 3 emissions reductions for cotton used in products.

To learn more about benefits of Trust Protocol membership for brands and retailers, click here.

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Deepika Mishra

Standards and Data Lead (consultant)

Deepika Mishra is the Standards and Data Lead for the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, acting as a consultant for the program. As an accomplished scientist and data analytics specialist, Deepika leads on analysis of the Trust Protocol’s environmental metrics. She collaborates extensively with agricultural research institutions, conservation groups, and food and trade organizations, playing a vital role in the establishment of sustainability and social standards within the industry.

Deepika earned her Ph.D. in plant and soil science from Texas Tech University, specializing in cotton breeding and genetics. With over a decade of experience, she has spearheaded diverse agricultural projects in both India and the United States, covering crops like cotton, cowpeas, castor, sesame, guar, guayule, tomato, and field pennycress (cover crop). Her contributions also include the development and release of multiple cowpea varieties in India during her M.S. studies in vegetable breeding and genetics.