Better Cotton Initiative Global Impact Report: 69% of BCI Farmers reduced synthetic nitrogen use

On 7 October 2026, World Cotton Day, the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) published its first Global Impact Report in five years. Drawing on nine years of field-level data from a programme representing nearly a quarter of global cotton production, the report sets out measurable progress among farmers who have adopted the BCI Standard and gives a candid assessment of the challenges that remain.

Since joining the programme, 69% of BCI Farmers have reduced their synthetic nitrogen use per kilogram of cotton and 65% have reduced their synthetic pesticide active ingredient use per hectare. Among smallholder farmers, 59% improved their net income from cotton, while 52% of fully irrigated farms reduced the irrigation water applied per kilogram of cotton. Of the cotton produced by BCI Farmers, 54% is grown with a lower carbon footprint.

Women now account for 17% of field facilitation and producer unit management roles, up from 9% five years ago. The report also acknowledges that progress is uneven in crop protection, where gains in smallholder settings are not yet consistently seen on large farms.

BCI’s 2026 Annual Report shows the scale of the organisation’s work. In the 2024-25 season, BCI supported 1.4 million cotton farmers, who produced 6.1 million tonnes of BCI Cotton, equal to 23.87% of the world’s cotton production.

Iain Gardiner, BCI’s Senior Director of Impact and Development, describes the report, which draws on contextual analysis of more than 20 million data points collected each year, as a first step for future programme delivery and better-informed decisions based on evidence.