Brand new, secondhand: A push for circularity could reinvigorate US cotton demand

Free trade in textiles has delivered on the promise of cheaper apparel for US consumers but has also come at a cost. Enabled by liberalized trade, the apparel industry's pursuit of cheap labor has taken manufacturing to corners of the world with poor working conditions and lax environmental standards. Increasingly, this “race to the bottom” has made it harder to bear the costs of high-quality materials and craftsmanship, resulting in growing segments of the apparel industry defined by disposability rather than durability. The relentless focus on cost has presented challenges to the US cotton industry by favoring synthetics and dislocating American textile capacity - leaving the fiber with scant domestic demand.

Between shoddy clothes, mounting textile waste, concerns over microplastics and allegations of forced labor, the shortcomings of the global textile value chain have become harder to overlook. In response, companies are making commitments to remake their supply chains by sourcing labor and materials responsibly and to assume an increasing level of stewardship over textile disposal.

This report focuses on how this appeal to circularity could translate into an opportunity for the US cotton industry. The apparel industry's push for “preferred fibers” is consistent with the many layers of premiumization already present in cotton markets and plays to US industry strengths in transparency and traceability.

On the manufacturing side, the decimation of the domestic textile industry has prompted many apparel companies to bemoan the lack of a responsible alternative to the low-cost, hyper-consumptive model that has replaced it. Policy is poised to play a role in nearshoring some textile capacity under the principles of enhanced circularity. A domestic manufacturing base that values fiber on the basis of its performance and ESG characteristics, instead of simply on its cost, will not only help apparel companies achieve their sustainability goals - it will also help fully realize the inherent value of US cotton.

This report is a companion article to Waste deep: A growing backlash against fast fashion could spell new opportunity for US cotton.