37% of e3 farmers rely on rainfall instead of irrigation to grow their cotton. The 63% who use irrigation average 261 gallons of water per pound of lint cotton produced.

Herbicides and other crop protection technology help farmers implement sustainable and regenerative cotton growing practices like reduced tillage and no-till farming.

79% of e3 Sustainable Cotton farmers practice reduced tillage to protect their No. 1 asset — the soil. Reduced tillage improves soil health and saves e3 Sustainable Cotton farmers an average of 1.4 tons of soil per acre from erosion loss. 

Agriculture plays a key role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and BASF helps e3 farmers reduce their footprint and increase yields with advanced cottonseed varieties and land management principles. 

By adopting more efficient tools and management practices, e3 Sustainable Cotton growers reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 3,691 tons in 2022, or the equivalent of 18 railcars of coal². 

e3 Sustainable Cotton farmers meet the demands of downstream buyers by producing cotton in ways that support workers’ welfare and their communities. 

73% of e3 Sustainable Cotton farmers incorporate practices like crop rotation, reduced tillage, and cover crops to build carbon in the soil, improve soil quality and limit carbon loss to the atmosphere. 

The unique environmental and social sustainability results for each bale of e3 cotton are matched to their Permanent Bale ID (PBI), guaranteeing its legitimacy and traceability. The PBI enables brands and retailers to know where their cotton came from and what went into growing it, enabling sustainability claims and linking positive-impact stories to specific farmers and communities.