A swing back in cotton yields in the 2024-25 season, alongside ramped up brand reach-out, has driven a 16 per cent lift in the number of clothing and footwear bearing the Cotton Australia Mark.
More than 85 million clothing and homewares products have carried the Australian Cotton Mark since the initiative was launched in 2013, with most of this being initialised in 2024 - or 33,648,013 licensed products.
The number of licensed brand partners also grew to 52 - a 33 per cent increase - with that being driven by a 115 per cent increase in the total number of applications in 2024 of 438.
Cotton to Market brand relations manager Ashley Hollis cited the ongoing growth in efforts by Australian cotton growers and the work the Cotton to Market team does to maintain and build relationships with brand partners.
“The continued rise in demand shows how much consumers and brands appreciate the quality of Australian cotton and the sustainable practices behind its production,” Hollis said.
“Our team is proud to work closely with brands to ensure they have access to the cotton our growers produce and to strengthen these partnerships over time.”
Leading Australian retailers, such as Target and Big W, were among those submitting the most brand applications in 2024.
“We also value the support of other brands, such as ELK, Sussan, and Aldi, in increasing their support for the local industry,” Hollis said.
“Our growers continue to meet the demand for high-quality cotton,” Ashley said. “It’s rewarding to see the relationships we’ve built with brands grow and evolve year after year.”
The growth also comes as cotton yields in Australia hit around 5 million bales according to Cotton Australia CEO Adam Kay. The latest number is nearly 500,000 more than what was predicted late last year, and amounts to over one million tonnes of cotton for the next crop.