POC is grown under exactly the same standards as organic cotton and complies with NPOP rules (organic farming standards in India). Both POC and organic cotton are certified by a third party certification body. Therefore POC has exactly the same positive impact on the environment, health, and living standards of growing farmers. The only difference is that since POC is in its transition period it is labeled "cotton-in-transition" instead of "organic" under current legislations.

POC has no difference with organic cotton in terms of the positive social impact that it provides or product quality. See Q1. for further details. In fact, since the organic cotton industry is currently facing a point where demand is outstripping supply and industry experts estimate organic cotton supply shortage, we believe growing POC is one of the most important initiatives for the long-term sustainability of world organic cotton businesses.

All these initiatives share the same goal to promote more sustainable cotton business, but each initiative has different focuses and takes different approaches: We call BCI a "sustainable commodity" that focuses on correcting misconducts in agricultural practices such as over-use of pesticides to improve agricultural efficiencies. It also permits the use of GMO seeds so it is a more scalable approach, given the shortage of non-GMO seeds. Fairtrade focuses on fair distribution of wealth and guarantees minimum price for farmers. Cotton made in Africa focuses on increasing demand for African cotton and improving the environment and welfare of farmers’ living in Africa. POC/organic cotton has the strictest standards in terms of fertilizer use and chemical pesticides to maximize positive impact on the environment and all living species. POC/organic cotton also only use non-GMO seeds. POC focuses on improving lives and the ecology in India, the largest organic cotton growing country. We are also one of very few initiatives in the world that focuses on promoting and supporting farmers' transition from conventional to organic farming.

Absolutely! We provide POC, organic cotton, and blended cotton, depending on our partner buyers' needs. Although POC is one of our core products and we do encourage customers to incorporate POC in their portfolio considering its significance on the long-term sustainability of organic cotton businesses, we also understand that sometimes the POC mechanism can be difficult to communicate to end consumers. We are working hard to grow the POC brand so that 'cotton-in-transition' becomes a more common concept and becomes easier for our buyers to incorporate in their portfolio.

Our POC and organic cotton prices are provided at prices equivalent to market prices of Indian organic cotton, which was 2~10% above conventional cotton in 2013 according to Textile Exchange. As we scale we aim to further close the price gap with conventional cotton to make it more affordable for our buyers.

We use Indian NPOP certified cotton-in-transition and organic cotton and work with manufactures certified by GOTS. We work directly with manufacturers, brands, and retailers to coordinate supply chains and distribute our organic and Pre Organic Cotton products through their designated processing facilities.

We support successful organic cotton businesses through providing sourcing solutions that meet cost, schedule, and quality needs. We help minimize risks such as supply shortage and trust issues, and enhance economic efficiencies across the supply chain. to find out more about our solutions.

POC works with more than 50 companies. Click here to see which brands have already introduced POC. POC is expanding overseas and we will update the list with more global brands and retailers soon!