Is Fear of Backlash Stopping Brands from Tackling Child Labour in Cotton?
As a consultancy specialising in sustainability, we encourage the use of natural fibres—yet cotton, the most widely used, carries some of the highest child labour risks. In 2024, cotton made up 82% of the total revenue share of natural fibres.
Child labour in cotton supply chains is not just a risk– it’s a near certainty in many regions. While some brands genuinely lack visibility, others hesitate to look too closely. Fear of reputational damage, supply chain disruptions, or legal consequences can make ignorance seem like the safer option. Instead, investigative organisations like Transparentum have to fill the gaps, uncovering the uncomfortable truths that brands are not addressing themselves.
In January 2025, Transparentum released a report uncovering child labour in ‘ethical’ cotton production in India. This finding reinforces a hard truth: labels and certifications do not eliminate risk. In low-mechanisation regions, even certified cotton can have hidden labour issues. The only way to know is to keep asking questions, keep tracing supply chains, and stay engaged. The narrative needs to change. A brand shouldn’t be condemned for finding child labour–it should be judged on how it responds.
The Hidden Layers of Child Labour in Agriculture
Unlike factory-based work, child labour in farming is often embedded within family structures, economic necessity, and rural traditions. The risk varies by region:
Low-risk: In mechanised systems like the U.S. and Australia, machines dominate the process, limiting the need for manual labour.
High-risk: In India, China, and other smallholder cotton farming regions, high costs and limited access to machinery make manual labour essential.
In India, where nearly all cotton farms are under two hectares, families often rely on their children to help manage debt and ensure economic survival.
The Overlooked Stage: Cotton Seed Production
When we speak to brands about their ideal cotton supply chain, the ambition is usually the same: traceability down to the farm level. However, one of the least scrutinised areas of cotton production is seed cultivation. Producing hybrid cotton seeds requires delicate hand-pollination of flowers, a task where small, nimble fingers are preferred for precision. This makes child labour particularly prevalent in this stage. Investigations have found children as young as six working on hybrid cotton seed farms, performing repetitive and meticulous tasks that escape oversight. Audits and certifications often focus on later stages of production, leaving these early processes unexamined.
Brands may have little direct control over this stage, but ignoring it only deepens the problem. A first step would be to acknowledge it exists and explore ways to support interventions like the MV Foundation.
Avoidance vs. Impact: How Brands Can Respond
Faced with these high child labour risks in cotton, brands wanting to mitigate them tend to take one of two approaches:
Avoidance: Sourcing from countries with lower child labour risks and higher mechanisation, such as the US and Australia.
Impact: Acknowledging the risk but working directly with smallholder farmers to improve livelihoods and reduce vulnerabilities.
There’s no single ‘right’ approach, but brands that actively engage with high-risk areas have an opportunity to support initiatives that are driving change, or perhaps even be that initiative driving the change. Take ARMEDANGELS for example, they set up their own Organic Farmers Association to support small-scale farmers in India to convert from conventional to organic cotton farming.
Supporting Systemic Change: Child Labour Free Zones & Participatory Guarantee Systems
Beyond individual brand efforts, systemic solutions are needed to break the cycle of child labour:
Child Labour Free Zones: These initiatives support education and economic opportunities to prevent child labour at the root. Brands can partner with organisations creating these zones, providing a middle ground between the avoidance and impact approaches.
Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS): A community-driven verification system where farmers collectively uphold labour and environmental standards. For instance, a farmer will check that their neighbour farmer is sending their children to school. While this may seem unconventional, there are cases where it is effective.
One example of this PGS system in practice is Farfarm, a consultancy working in Brazil to develop regenerative supply chains using PGS principles. Founded by Beto Bina in 2018, Farfarm collaborates with local families to increase income security while ensuring children’s education. In partnership with the sneaker brand VEJA, they’ve built an organic cotton supply chain in the Amazon under agroforestry principles–supporting over 100 farming families and the forest at the same time.
Watch Farfarm’s short film, “Seeding Songs”, a three-minute glimpse into how community-driven solutions are reshaping agricultural supply chains.
Final Thoughts: A Call to Action
In a fibre supply chain as vast and complex as cotton, the narrative needs to change. Brands shouldn’t be condemned for uncovering child labour–because if they are, many will simply choose not to look. Instead, they should be judged on how they respond.
That said, not all brands engaging with this issue are doing so in good faith. Fast fashion giants like Shein should not be rewarded for uncovering child labour in their supply chains, especially when their business model fuels the very conditions that enable it. There is a critical difference between brands that use natural fibres and genuinely seek to engage in solutions versus those that commodify ‘sustainability’ for damage control.
Not all initiatives are equally effective either. Some programs are well-intentioned but fail to address the root causes, while others drive real, systemic impact. Bergstrand Consultancy helps brands navigate this landscape—identifying the most credible initiatives, ensuring due diligence is in place, and developing sourcing strategies that balance risk mitigation with meaningful engagement.
If your brand is ready to take a proactive approach, we can help. From assessing certification schemes to building direct partnerships with on-the-ground initiatives, we guide brands toward solutions that move beyond compliance and create real change. Get in touch with us at info(at)bergstrand.co