Research shows gap in climate protections for India's small-scale cotton farmers
Broader support needed from government and fashion houses.
Major fashion companies and government agencies need to boost support for India's small-scale cotton farmers as they battle the worsening impacts of climate change, new research from IIED suggests.
The research focused on two regions in India, the world’s second-largest producer of cotton after China.
It found that among the 360 farmers surveyed in Gujarat and Maharashtra states, more than half had suffered either major or complete crop loss due to flood and drought in the past five years. About two-thirds said they were experiencing longer dry spells, higher average temperatures and more days of extreme heat.
Climate change is emerging as a serious threat to international commodity supply chains as well as to the livelihoods of the millions of smallholder farmers who depend on cotton.
Laura Kelly, director of IIED’s Shaping Sustainable Markets team, said: “Climate change is turning into a nightmare for farmers everywhere and India’s cotton growers are no exception.
“There are some government programmes and insurance schemes to help them but our research shows they’re not well known, and may not provide comprehensive support in any case. While farmers are already doing what they can to protect their livelihoods, government and investors also need to pitch in.
“Big fashion chains need to recognise they have a role to play in helping their suppliers deal with climate shocks. It’s a moral imperative as well as the smart commercial choice to support the families producing a key commodity for their industry.
“Improving the support for a large number of small-scale farms could help make the cotton supply chain more resilient to climate shocks.”
IIED’s survey found that farmers are combating the climate threat by diversifying and rotating their crops or taking out loans to invest in things like irrigation to mitigate against future problems.
Dipping into savings was another common coping strategy, but not all respondents had this option available to them.
Others said that in response to climate shocks they had been forced to sell land or livestock, while a small number had avoided using healthcare and even cut back on the amount of food they were eating.
About two-thirds of respondents said they had crop insurance (81% in Maharashtra and 42% in Gujarat); one-third had life insurance; 36% had health insurance; and only 8% had livestock insurance.
Much of the farmers’ access to insurance comes through government schemes, they told IIED. However, uptake was found to be very uneven. One-third of people surveyed said they had no access to any such government programmes, although this may be due in part to a lack of awareness.
This research was funded by Primark, but conducted independently by IIED and the All India Disaster Mitigation Institute.
Notes to editors
- Last year a global survey by IIED and the Forest and Farm Facility found smallholder farmers were spending hundreds of billions of dollars of their own money to fight climate change impacts.
For more information or to request an interview, contact Simon Cullen:
+44 7503 643332 or [email protected]
