Short and sweet

Cotton in Conversion (CiC), or organic cotton in certification, is cotton in conversion from conventional cotton to organic cotton. 

Sourcing cotton for the future

We want to support producers in transforming their farms. The conversion from conventional cotton to certified organic cotton takes about three years, as the soil needs this amount of time to fully recover from the artificial pesticides. During this time, the cotton is already grown with the standards of controlled organic cultivation, but it must be marked with CiC for that long. This also means that the farmers do not yet receive an organic premium during the conversion. After they have grown organically for three years, they will eventually receive the organic cotton certification. We, at erlich textil, are already sourcing CiC and thus hope to encourage more farms to grow organic cotton.

Good to know

You can safely assume that it is grown under certified organic conditions (controlled organic cultivation) by our cotton farmers. Artificial fertilizers and pesticides, as well as toxic chemicals and genetically modified seeds are strictly prohibited. For better transparency, however, it may not yet be directly labeled and sold as organic cotton. In this respect, it is labeled with CiC.

What are the advantages of CiC?

1. organic cotton is still a very scarce commodity with strongly growing demand

2. in the long run, CiC will increase the organic share of the cotton market

3. farmers growing organic cotton are not exposed to pesticides and subsequently earn more money

4. step by step, we can change the global cotton value chain

Why is this information interesting to you?

In some of our erlich favorites we have already processed CiC which you can immediately recognize by the symbols. They are in no way inferior to the quality of our other products. Great examples of our products with CiC are: Bernhard, Helmut or also the perennial favorite Horst.

You want to know more about CiC?

You can find more useful information on the website of the non-profit organization Textile Exchange, which is firmly commited to the developement of sustainable fibers and materials within the textile industry.