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Strengthening sustainable cotton supply chains through women’s empowerment

Improved profitability, resilience and social impact at scale
As one of Europe’s largest retailers, Primark works with a vast and complex supply chain that supports the livelihoods of thousands of farming families around the world. As part of its long-term sustainability strategy, the company set out an ambition to ensure the cotton within its supply chain is sourced more sustainably and responsibly, while also contributing to broader social and environmental goals.
Recognising the critical but often underrepresented role women play within cotton farming communities, Primark partnered with CottonConnect and the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) to deliver training and support programmes for female cotton farmers in Gujarat, India.
The initiative combined sustainable cotton farming education with business training, life skills development, and women’s empowerment programmes designed to strengthen both agricultural outcomes and community resilience.

Key outcomes

  • women farmers trained during the first three years

  • Programme expanded to reach an additional 10,000 women farmers

  • %

    less fertiliser used

  • %

    less pesticide used

  • %

    less water used

  • %

    higher yields achieved

  • %

    higher profits achieved

The challenge

Women play an essential role in cotton farming across many rural communities, yet they often have limited access to agricultural training, financial resources, and decision-making opportunities.

In many regions, women contribute significantly to farm production while remaining excluded from technical training, business education, community leadership opportunities, and household financial decisions.

At the same time, conventional farming practices can create environmental and financial pressures linked to high fertiliser, pesticide, and water use. Primark recognised that supporting women farmers could contribute not only to more sustainable cotton production, but also to stronger and more resilient farming communities.

 

 

The approach

Since 2013, CottonConnect, Primark, and SEWA have collaborated through the Primark Cotton Project – based on the REEL Cotton programme – to provide female cotton farmers with practical agricultural training and wider social support.

The programme included:

  • Sustainable cotton farming practices
  • Efficient fertiliser and pesticide use
  • Water management techniques
  • Farmer Business School training
  • Rights and Life Skills Education programmes

 

The initiative aimed to strengthen both farming knowledge and women’s participation in household and community decision-making. Alongside environmental improvements, the programme focused on building confidence, leadership skills, and financial awareness among participating women farmers.

Following strong early results, Primark expanded the initiative in 2016 with a commitment to train an additional 10,000 women farmers over the following six years.

 

 

 

 

 

The programme delivered measurable improvements across farm productivity, resource efficiency, household income, and social participation.

The impact

Reduced resource use

By adopting more sustainable farming methods, participating farmers significantly reduced agricultural input use compared to control farmers. By year three, farmers were using: 40% less fertiliser 44% less pesticide 10% less water These changes helped reduce production costs while lowering environmental pressure on farming systems.

Higher yields and increased profitability

Despite lower input use, farmers achieved: 6% higher yields 247% higher profits The improvements strengthened household financial stability and increased opportunities for investment in education, farming equipment, and long-term family wellbeing.

Strengthening women’s participation and confidence

One of the programme’s most significant outcomes was the social impact within farming communities. Women who previously had limited involvement in household or farming decisions became more active participants in financial planning, agricultural management, and community discussions. The programme also helped shift attitudes around women’s roles within farming households, contributing to greater recognition and respect for women farmers’ contributions.

“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 Primark’s Ethical Trading Team

Looking ahead

The partnership between Primark, CottonConnect, and SEWA shows how sustainable sourcing programmes can create impact far beyond agricultural production alone. By investing in women farmers through training, education, and leadership opportunities, the programme has helped strengthen livelihoods, improve resource efficiency, and support more inclusive rural communities.

At the same time, it has provided valuable insight into cotton supply chains and demonstrated how sustainability initiatives can contribute to both business objectives and wider social progress.