Is Cotton On sustainable?
Their commitment to a sustainable future surely can’t be for-cotton. While the brand is by no means perfect, we’re actually pretty impressed by the progress they have made in lieu of their 2030 Carbon Neutral goals.
Cotton
When it comes to sustainability, conventional cotton is not it. We know it, our readers know it, and apparently… Cotton On knows it too!
As signatories of the Responsible Sourcing Network, the brand has worked hard to keep traceability and accountability within their cotton sourcing sector and remove slavery out of the supply chain. Though, the brand admits the majority of the cotton they source is not easily traceable back to its origin.
To combat this issue, Cotton On prioritizes certified organic and recycled cotton, Australian cotton, and cotton grown through their very own African Cotton Program. Established in 2014 in partnership with the Kenyan government, the program works with local farmers to establish sustainable farming practices that allow the people to build stable livelihoods.
The program has supported over 15,000 farmers and the strategy has grown beyond just cotton into a diversified crop approach.
In total, 66% of their cotton is certified by the Better Cotton Initiative (though BCI cotton is not without its own greenwashing), 16% is recycled, and 11% is organic. Only 7% comes from other sources.
Other Materials
In terms of whether or not Cotton On is good quality all-around in terms of materials, errrr, let’s just say the name “Petroleum On” might better represent the company. It turns out cotton actually makes up a small, small percentage of all Cotton On garments. Polyester, viscose rayon, linen, polyamide, and acrylic are some of the most commonly used fabrics.
Which is not entirely shocking, but still disappointing considering 64% of their synthetic materials and 71% of their plastics come from conventional, virgin sources.
In Cotton On’s defense, sustainable fabric selection has been one of their top priorities: “We’re on a mission to make 100% of our products with a sustainable attribute by 2030.” Despite the tricky and potentially green-washed wording, we do feel the brand is actually making significant efforts to reach their goals.
Circularity
In 2023, Seamless became an official member of the Cotton On Foundation. Led by the Australian Fashion Council, the government funded program plays a significant role in the Australian clothing industry’s transformation towards a circular economy by 2030.
Cotton On also partnered with UPPAREL last year, which led to a 2.6% recycling rate from our faulty goods program across Australian stores for a whopping 104,747 kg of waste diverted from the landfill.
Packaging
After removing plastic shopping bags from stores in 2019, Cotton On is aiming for 100% reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging by 2025. As of now, 63% of their paper and cardboard supply comes from FSC-certified sources, and 6% is post-consumer recycled.
Planet Friendly Philanthropy
While we wouldn’t yet say Cotton On is a good brand by all our sustainable fashion criteria, they are definitely a do-good brand.
The Cotton On Foundation makes up the top 5% of Australian NGOs and is one of the 37 organizations to raise above $10 million AUD annually.
Focused on environmental activism, education, and mental health services, their philanthropic sector does things like building schools and health centers, serving meals, providing fresh drinking water, planting trees, and more. For example, the foundation helped support the settling of 8-10 million coral larvae on the Great Barrier Reef this past year in partnership with The Reef Cooperative.
Partnering with One Tree Planted and WWF, the brand is actively planting one million trees in regions of need across the globe.
So while the brand undoubtedly still funnels through fashion trends faster than we’d like, all in all, we think Cotton On is one of the better fast fashion companies out there (though admittedly, the bar is LOW).
