Organic Cotton Accelerator’s impact reaches more than 100,000 farmers

The OCA’s Farm Programme trains cotton farmers in India and Pakistan in organic and regenerative practices

More than 100,000 farmers are part of the Organic Cotton Accelerator’s Farm Programme for the 2024–2025 season, a significant milestone toward scaling organic cotton globally.

The program’s growth builds on the 2023–2024 season, during which OCA worked with 82,264 farmers, including 35,070 in-conversion farmers, across nearly 262,000 acres in India and Pakistan. OCA continued to invest in training farmers in organic and regenerative practices, supported by a network of 415 demonstration farms. This year’s program also expanded to include 18 brands, 14 implementing partners, and 11 seed partners.

Last season, OCA made their data collection systems more robust by including environmental data, such as climate indicators and water use. Ruud Schute, OCA’s program director, shared, “Data is not just about measurement—it’s about empowering farmers, informing industry action, and driving continuous improvement.”

In terms of his hopes for the future, Schute said that the farmers’ “commitment to sustainable practices is driving real environmental and social change, but they cannot do it alone. . . We encourage the industry to step up and invest more in the people at the heart of the supply chain. True sustainability starts at the farm, and meaningful action must follow.”

Organic & Non-GMO Insights June 2025