Cotton

Our Approach

Cotton accounts for the majority of all fibres used in the garments and household textiles offered by ALDI. Whilst cotton is a renewable natural resource that is fully biodegradable, it is also linked to human rights and environmental risks in the countries where it is grown. Together with our business partners, we are committed to standards that achieve long-term sustainable improvements in the cultivation of cotton.

By 2025, all our ALDI-exclusive garments and household textiles products will be of either recycled, sourced or certified according to internationally recognised sustainability standards. We also exclude cotton from countries where cultivation and harvesting are systematically associated with human rights violations in any of our products.

Our Actions

Certification

We want to provide our customers the highest quality at the best possible price. To do this, we use systems with proven reliability and suitability for market-wide implementation. The use of independent third-party certification schemes when buying cotton is one example. These schemes promote social and environmental standards in cotton cultivation and processing.

Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)

The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) defines globally consistent and rigorous criteria for the processing of textiles made from certified organic natural fibres throughout the entire supply chain. These criteria include the controlled organic cultivation of fibres, environmentally friendly and socially responsible production and consistent labelling of products. Compliance with the guidelines is verified throughout the supply chain with regard to the use of chemical additives and the core labour standards of the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Only textiles products, which contain at least 70% organically cultivated natural fibres may receive GOTS certification. This certification needs to be issued by an independent testing institute. ALDI also accepts GOTS ‘organic - in conversion’ that supports farmers in their transitioning period from conventional cotton to organic cotton farming.

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Organic Content Standard (OCS)

The Organic Content Standard (OCS) enables the exact share of ecologically sound materials contained in a product to be recorded. The OCS tracks the use of certified, organically produced natural fibres, from the creation of the individual fibres to the finished product. Depending on the share of organically produced fibres contained, the certified product displays either the “OCS blended” logo (contains at least 5%) or the “OCS 100” logo (contains 95-100%). ALDI requires cotton in OCS blended labelled products to be of 100% organic origin and only allows blending with non-cotton materials.

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Cotton made in Africa (CmiA)

Following the principle of 'helping others to help themselves', Cotton made in Africa provides smallholders with training in modern, efficient, and environmentally friendly cultivation methods. In addition to this, it also imparts basic knowledge of business and economics. Pre-financing measures, the protection of natural conservation areas, and the ban of genetically modified cottonseed are just as much a part of the CmiA standard as compliance with the ILO core labour standards and the promotion of women's equal rights.

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Better Cotton

Since 2017, ALDI partners with Better Cotton to improve cotton farming globally. Better Cotton seeks to reduce the negative impacts of cotton production on people and the planet. The basic principles of Better Cotton include training farmers on the elimination of harmful pesticides and the efficient use of water, the preservation of soil fertility, as well as the compliance with minimum social criteria and the prohibition of child and forced/bonded labour. Better Cotton is sourced via a system of mass balance.

To enhance the transparency of our supply chain, ALDI uses Better Cotton’s online tracking and tracing system, called Better Cotton Platform (BCP). ALDI verifies the amount of cotton sourced as Better Cotton using this platform, which covers the supply chain from the ginner all the way to ALDI.

Fairtrade

Fairtrade gives the cotton growers the security to sell their cotton at a fixed minimum price, which covers the costs associated with sustainable production. In addition, smallholder cooperatives receive a Fairtrade premium, which is then invested in community projects. The Fairtrade standards not only cover social and economic criteria: in terms of ecologically sustainable agriculture, Fairtrade also promotes environmentally friendly cultivation practices, while prohibiting genetic engineering and regulating the use of pesticides.

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Textiles

It is important to us that garment and household textiles, which are a regular component of our weekly special buys, are produced in an environmentally and socially sound way. Our goal for the future is to further expand our range of sustainable textiles and create even greater transparency in ALDI’s supply chain.

Most of our textile products are manufactured in production facilities in Asia. Our Corporate Responsibility (CR) team works closely with our textile business partners to support them in the implementation of our CR standards. Additionally, our colleagues based in Hong Kong and Bangladesh are frequently in the production facilities to assess the conditions on the ground. While we strive to improve working conditions in our production facilities, we also look at other stages of our supply chain, from cotton production over spinning to dyeing and finishing of garments.

Launched in 2013, the ALDI Factory Advancement (AFA) Project delivers change in factories that produce our garments in Bangladesh. Its core principle is the promotion of dialogue and cooperation between workers and managers. To date, approximately 85,000 workers and their managers have experienced positive changes in their day-to-day working environment.

Stakeholder Dialogue & Capacity Building

We believe the best way to protect the people and the environment is through joint initiatives and partnerships. For this reason, we engage in various multi-stakeholder initiatives and projects on the ground.

Multi-stakeholder initiatives

Since 2017

Better Cotton

Since 2017, ALDI partners with Better Cotton to improve cotton farming globally. Better Cotton seeks to reduce the negative impacts of cotton production on people and the planet. The basic principles of Better Cotton include training farmers on the elimination of harmful pesticides and the efficient use of water, the preservation of soil fertility, as well as the compliance with minimum social criteria and the prohibition of child and forced/bonded labour. Better Cotton is sourced via a system of mass balance.

To enhance the transparency of our supply chain, ALDI uses Better Cotton’s online tracking and tracing system, called Better Cotton Platform (BCP). ALDI verifies the amount of cotton sourced as Better Cotton using this platform, which covers the supply chain from the ginner all the way to ALDI.

More information

Logo of CmiA

Since 2016

Cotton made in Africa (CmiA)

Since 2016, ALDI has been a partner of Cotton made in Africa. Following the principle of 'helping others to help themselves', Cotton made in Africa provides smallholders with training in modern, efficient, and environmentally friendly cultivation methods. In addition to this, it also imparts basic knowledge of business and economics. Pre-financing measures, the protection of natural conservation areas, and the ban of genetically modified cottonseed are just as much a part of the CmiA standard as compliance with the ILO core labour standards and the promotion of women's equal rights.

More information

Logo of Bündnis für nachhaltige Textilien

Since 2015

German Partnership for Sustainable Textiles

ALDI became a member of the German Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (German: Bündnis für nachhaltige Textilien) in 2015. This multi-stakeholder initiative is committed to improving social and environmental conditions in the global textile production.

Working together

In the context of ALDI’s membership, we are actively working on the topic of living wages by being a member of the “Partnership Initiative on Living Wages”. Since 2019, we have been working on the improvement of our purchasing practices as these can have a large impact on the working conditions and wage payments in production facilities used for ALDI production.

In September 2021, ALDI joined the “Living Wage Lab” of the “Partnership Initiative on Living Wages” to strengthen its work towards fairer wages for workers in the garment textile supply chain.

More: Textilbündnis

2019-2021

Improving purchasing practices (Partnership for Sustainable Textiles)

In the context of our membership in the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles, we are actively working on the topic of living wages and we have been a member of the Partnership Initiative on Living Wages since 2019. Within this initiative, we have been working on the improvement of our purchasing practices as these can have an immense impact on the working conditions and wage payments in production facilities used for ALDI production.

As a first step, we conducted a purchasing practices self-assessment, involving our international buying, design and quality departments. Based on this gap analysis, we have developed a comprehensive roadmap together with our buying colleagues with concrete measures aiming at responsible purchasing practices. Together with other brands we also established a peer learning group to find solutions for challenges and share best practices.

While we are continuously working on improvements, we have conducted another survey on ALDI’s purchasing practices with our direct and indirect business partners. The results of this survey help us to tailor our buying processes even more effectively to the needs of actors in our supply chains.

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Projects on the ground

Project in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan (2018-2021)

Fairtrade project on cottonseed

From 2018-2021, ALDI SOUTH Germany supported the Fairtrade cottonseed project in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. The project aimed to empower smallholder farmers and to improve the quality and supply of non-GMO cotton from Central Asia.

To reach the project goal the following measures were implemented:

Training of farmers on seed production and multiplication
Actions to combat GMO-contamination
Enlargement of cultivable acreage for organic cotton and yield
Knowledge management and sharing

© Fairtrade / Didier Gentilhomme

More: Fairtrade Germany

Women holding empty pesticide containers

Project in Mozambique

Cotton made in Africa recycling project

In 2019, Cotton made in Africa (CmiA) and the local cotton company SAN-JFS developed a recycling project in Mozambique. This project supports women from local farming communities who operate eco-collection points. Over 72,000 empty pesticide containers were collected and sent for recycling in the first year and benefitted up to 20,000 farmers. With the exclusive support of ALDI, the project is able to continue into a second phase and benefit even more farmers.

© Cotton made in Africa

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Project in India

Cotton in-conversion to organic project

In 2022, the ALDI SOUTH Group and ALDI Nord Group launched a project in India that supports approximately 1,000 smallholder farmers to move from conventional to organic cotton farming. We are pleased to be able to provide our customers with a number of different styles of cosy family pyjamas, made from the project’s cotton and will be available in several markets across Europe by the end of February 2023.

Currently organic cotton only accounts for approximately 1% of the global cotton market. Our long-term goal is to start to increase the availability of organic cotton. The use of organic agricultural practices reduces negative impacts on the wider environment, including those related to soil health, water quality and biodiversity, it also improves the livelihoods of farmers and positively impacts the health of local communities.

ALDI wanted to be part of the solution, this is why it has launched the Cotton in-conversion to organic project in collaboration with a number of organisations including the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)).

The transition from conventional to organic cotton farming takes up to three years. This means that farmers only receive a higher price for their cotton once it is certified organic in the fourth year. This three-year transition is a major barrier for many smallholder farmers because during this time they will experience yield loss and higher production costs. ALDI supports these smallholder farmers during the transition period with training on agricultural practices, natural fertiliser, organic pesticides, soil fertility as well as provision of high-quality organic seeds. These activities are provided by implementation partners on the ground.