1 December, 2010

The world’s poorest cotton farmers are being denied a means of escaping poverty because of subsidies dished out by the European Union and the United States to their own farmers, according to a new report by the Fairtrade Foundation.

The study, which is called The Great Cotton Stitch-Up, says that cotton – the most widely used natural fibre in the world – should be the ‘white gold’ that propels some 10 million West African farmers to a better future.

But with the EU and the US having spent more than $30 billion on subsidies in less than 10 years, cotton prices for those most in need have been slashed, making it more difficult for them to trade their way out of poverty.

It is estimated that the so-called Cotton-4 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali – which rely on cotton more than any other commodity for their export revenues – lose $250 million a year because of these subsidies.

The Great Cotton Stitch-Up details the devastating effect this has had on cotton farmers in West Africa, and marks the start of a campaign to demand that the EU scraps its cotton subsidies.

Supporters are urged to email Caroline Spelman, the Minister of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to demand that the British government takes action.