By Morgane Lapeyre
Cotton shouldnΆt be considered one of the thirstiest crops thanks to new farming technologies, James Pruden, a spokesman for Cotton Inc., said in response to a report last week by WWF International.
“Cotton is a remarkably drought-tolerant commodity,” Pruden said by phone from Shanghai yesterday. Cotton Inc., based in Cary, North Carolina, is funded by U.S. growers and importers. The U.S., the biggest exporter, reduced use of irrigated water by almost 50 percent in the past 30 years while production gained, thanks to “a better understanding of the cotton plantΆs physical needs combined with new farming techniques and technologies,” he said. “Cotton is not a thirsty crop,” he said by e-mail.
More than half of global cotton production is grown in regions with high water risks, according to an expanded WWF International water risk filter announced last week. Jochem Verberne, head of corporate relations at WWF International, said cotton is one of the thirstiest crops.
“Water scarcity is top of mind for us at Cotton Incorporated,” Pruden said. “While we applaud the WWF for creating a tool to inform decision-makers on water risk, their position on cotton and water indicates that there is something amiss in either the accuracy of the data informing the model, or assumptions within the model.”
Cotton Conference
Less than half of the worldΆs cotton relies on irrigation, according to a report presented by Cotton Inc. researcher Ed Barnes last week at the International Cotton Conference in Bremen, Germany. Because itΆs resistant to drought and heat, cotton is often grown in areas where water resources are limited and that “can create a misperception that cotton requires excessive amounts of irrigation,” it said.
The WWF water risk filter is “meant to be an accurate indication of the risk associated with production in a particular location, so companies can take action to mitigate that risk and support sustainable water management,” Jochem Verberne, head of corporate relations at WWF International, said in an e-mail yesterday. “At the global level, the data from the Water Footprint Network is the best weΆre aware of, and weΆre always continuously trying to find better data sources.”
Water used to grow cotton makes up 3 percent of all water consumed in agriculture, according to Cotton Inc.Άs report.
