Food and agri-business firm Olam International  Limited has secured a US$150 million loan to procure sustainable cotton under the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI). The facility has a two-year tenor with Olam Treasury  and Olam Global Agri Treasury as co-borrowers.

Natixis is the sole lender and BCI coordinator for the facility.

Olam chief financial officer N Muthukumar says: “Olam continues to re-imagine what sustainable financing can look like through innovative, purpose-driven initiatives that have the strong support of our banking partners. This facility supports Olam’s procurement of sustainable cotton via the Better Cotton Initiative, while combining Olam’s operational ability, leadership position in cotton and sustainability focus with the banks’ objective of supporting more financing linked to sustainable activities.”

Olam has been actively involved with BCI since inception in 2009 and works with smallholder farmers in Africa to produce cotton more sustainably, increase yields through better agronomy, and positively impact livelihoods of farming communities.

BCI is the world’s leading sustainability initiative for cotton. Its aims to help cotton communities survive and thrive, while protecting and restoring the environment. Its membership includes stakeholders who span the industry – farmers, ginners, spinners, suppliers, manufacturers, brand owners, retailers, civil society organizations, donors and governments aggregating more than 2,100 members. Currently over 2.4 million farmers now have a licence to sell their cotton as Better Cotton.