The Turkey Cotton Association (IPUD) has set atarget of producing 13,000 tons of cotton for the 2013 harvest period under the standards of the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) which will be launched this year in the country.The BCI aims to transform cotton production worldwide by developing Better Cotton as a sustainable mainstream commodity.In order to achieve this goal, the Aydin, Izmir, Bursa, Adana, Gaziantep, Mardin, Sanliurfa and Sirnak regions in the country have planned to cultivate about 8,000 hectares of land, with the help of seven organizations such as the IPUD, the National Cotton Council, Taris Cotton Association, the Sanko Textile and Apparel Exporters Association of Istanbul, Izmir Mercantile Exchange, Textile Employers’ Association of Turkey and Turkey Union of Chambers of Agriculture, who would work with around 310 cotton producers in the country.
Earlier in January, 2013, the BCI held a one-day multi-stakeholder workshop in Istanbul where 55 participants representing various cotton producers’ organizations, Turkish Government agencies, non-governmental organizations and intergovernmental agencies met and discussed implementing the ‘Better Cotton’ initiative in the country.
The workshop participants agreed that Turkish cotton quality is recognized for the efficiency of its production, but there are number of material sustainability challenges which BCI must focus on, which include water use and negative impacts of irrigated cotton; implementing threshold spraying (of pesticides); and, in southeastern provinces in particular, decent work for hired (seasonal) labor on cotton farms.
The participants also suggested that BCI should collaborate with a range of stakeholders, including public, private and third-sector (NGO) organizations, for the cultivation of Better Cotton in Turkey.
