Navigating change in India’s organic cotton sector

The 2025–26 cotton season was a difficult one for India’s organic cotton sector. New certification and traceability requirements contributed to a sharp reduction in the volume of cotton that could reach the market as certified organic. The reforms were introduced to strengthen oversight and confidence in organic certification, a direction OCA supports. But the pace and scale of implementation created real challenges for farmer groups, certification bodies and businesses sourcing Indian organic cotton. Their introduction also coincided with a restructuring of certification bodies by geographic zone. The limited number and capacity of certification bodies allocated to organic cotton, combined with the timeframe for implementation, created a major bottleneck for farmer groups seeking certification.

OCA has raised concerns about certification capacity from the outset. As the season progressed, those concerns materialised, with certification bodies unable to process the volume of farmer groups requiring certification within the available timeframe. The consequences were felt by farmers, by our field partners, and businesses sourcing Indian organic cotton.

For OCA, the response has worked on both fronts: helping farmers and Implementing Partners navigate certification requirements and protecting visibility over Farm Programme supply, while bringing experience from the field and perspectives from our global brand partners into discussions with certification bodies, industry and government.

What happened on the ground 

India has strengthened its organic certification system through changes to the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) and the rollout of TraceNet 2.0. The new system introduces more extensive farmer verification, geographic zoning of certification bodies, additional inspections and documentation, and new digital and operational requirements for farmer groups. Several of these changes took effect shortly before or during the cotton season, leaving producer groups and certification bodies limited time to adapt.

By the beginning of procurement, around 900 of approximately 2,500 producer groups registered for certification had received confirmed certification. Many others remained pending or were unable to complete certification in time. In some cases, farmers were excluded because of documentation or administrative gaps rather than any change in their farming practices.

For affected farmers, the consequences were real and immediate: cotton grown using organic practices could not always be sold as certified organic, meaning some farmers had to sell into the conventional market without an organic premium.

Managing risks through the Farm Programme

Throughout the season, OCA and its field partners have been helping producer groups adapt to the new requirements, including support with documentation, verification, and engagement with certification bodies. This gave us visibility over where Farm Programme volumes were at risk and where intervention could help keep farmer groups on track for certification. Not every issue could be resolved in time, and some disruptions carried through the season. But the experience has changed how we are preparing for 2026–27. We are working earlier with Implementing Partners to identify certification risks, track the status of producer groups and address potential bottlenecks before procurement begins.

For OCA Contributors, these figures provide a clearer picture of what happened to Farm Programme supply during a highly disrupted season. They also help us identify where certification risks sit earlier and provide better information for sourcing decisions.

Addressing the bottlenecks behind the disruption

At the same time, OCA has been engaging with India’s Ministry of Textiles, CITI (The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry), and APEDA, the government body that oversees organic certification, including the NPOP framework, and export compliance.

Drawing on what we see through our Farm Programme, we’ve proposed practical adjustments to the implementation of TraceNet 2.0, including a phased transition for existing farmer groups and adjustments to certain inspection, digital and farmer-data requirements.

Our engagement supports stronger assurance and traceability, while addressing how the requirements work in practice across thousands of smallholder farms.

We remain in active dialogue with APEDA, certification bodies and our field partners as the sector transitions to the new requirements, working together to identify practical solutions that can be implemented on the ground.

What we’re seeing in the market

The certification disruption has tightened the market for certified Indian organic cotton. This comes against a relatively firm conventional cotton market and some uncertainty around the 2026–27 crop.

Certified availability remains the main pressure point for organic cotton. Recent market reporting shows Indian organic cotton prices strengthening relative to conventional cotton, with premiums widening as certified supply remains constrained.

While the season ahead will continue to present supply-side challenges, we are hopeful that certification and audit pressures will ease as the season progresses, provided no further changes are introduced. Some challenges are likely to remain, particularly around the implementation and adoption of new digital requirements on the ground.

As the new crop enters the market and more producer groups complete certification, we expect to gain more visibility on available organic volumes in India. Prices and premiums will also respond to buyer demand and wider cotton-market conditions.

For OCA Contributors, we are tracking these developments closely against expected Farm Programme volumes and will continue to share updates as procurement progresses.

OCA’s role across the value chain

The changes are experienced differently across the sector. For farmers, they affect their ability to continue investing in organic farming and have their efforts recognised in the market. Farmer groups are translating increasingly complex requirements into practice across hundreds of small farms. Certification bodies are adapting the way they operate, while brands and suppliers are navigating tighter certified supply. Government actors, meanwhile, are seeking to strengthen the credibility of India’s organic certification system.

OCA’s unique position across the value chain allows us to connect these perspectives: bringing what is happening on farms into policy discussions, bringing the sourcing experience of global brands into those conversations, and translating changes in the certification environment back into information Contributors can use.

That connection is particularly relevant during periods of disruption. Through the Farm Programme, OCA can see where certification changes are affecting farmers and expected supply, work with partners on the ground to address those issues, and raise recurring barriers with the institutions responsible for the wider system.

Planning for the 2026–27 season

Certification, available volumes and prices will continue to develop through the season. Our focus now is on identifying risks earlier and giving farmers, Implementing Partners and Contributors greater visibility as certification and procurement progress.

For Contributors sourcing from India, we encourage early conversations with the OCA team about expected volumes and certification status. We will use regular Farm Programme updates to flag changes in availability and emerging certification risks so that Contributors can factor them into sourcing plans as early as possible.