Sourcing executives from M&S and J Crew Group are among the latest recruits to join the board of the Better Cotton Council (BCC), the world’s largest cotton sustainability initiative.

Expansion of the board by five new members, including the appointment of two new co-chairs, means BCC membership now represents “the entire cotton industry and help[s] inform Better Cotton’s strategic direction”.

Joining the board are Elodie Gilart, Senior Sustainability Manager at M&S, and Doug Forster, Chief Sourcing Officer at J Crew.

Gilart currently leads M&S’s raw materials and circularity strategy for clothing and home products, while Forster “has been instrumental in streamlining the company’s supplier guide and has extensive experience driving sustainability initiatives at numerous apparel firms”.

Gilart said: “Cotton is the main material in our portfolio. Better Cotton has therefore been a key partner for us since we joined as a pioneer member back in 2009. Since then, we have achieved our cotton conversion target for all garments in 2019 and see this partnership as essential to progressing to the next level of our strategy, focusing on traceability and the acceleration of impact at the farm level.”

Forster added: “At J Crew Group, our sourcing of Better Cotton is key to our goal to have 100% of our cotton sourced sustainably by 2025. Cotton is our largest volume material, representing nearly 70% of our fiber footprint, and we are committed to sourcing cotton that benefits both people and planet.”

The new co-chairs are Bill Ballenden, Head of Sustainability and Innovation at US cotton trader Louis Dreyfus Co, and Tamar Hoek, Senior Policy Director for Sustainable Fashion at international not-for-profit company Solidaridad.