From Soil to Fashion: Why India's Textile Industry Must Champion Regenerative Cotton
Zydex Group
Dr Ajay Ranka Calls for a New Partnership Between Farmers and the Textile Value Chain
At Bharat Tex 2026, one message resonated strongly across the textile industry—the future of sustainable textiles begins with healthy soil.
Delivering a Masterclass on "Future Fibres: Chemical-Residue-Free Cotton," Dr Ajay Ranka, Chairman & Managing Director of Zydex Group, presented a compelling roadmap for transforming Indian cotton farming through Prakalp Sanjeevani, a regenerative farming protocol designed to restore soil health, improve farmer profitability, and create a dependable supply of chemical-residue-free cotton for the textile industry.
Cotton's Biggest Challenge Lies Below the Surface
While sustainability discussions often focus on water, carbon emissions and traceability, Dr Ranka emphasised that the root cause of declining cotton productivity is deteriorating soil health.
Years of intensive chemical farming have reduced soil organic carbon, damaged beneficial microbial activity, increased dependence on fertilisers and pesticides, and lowered water infiltration. These changes have increased cultivation costs while reducing farm resilience. Simultaneously, Indian cotton producers face growing competition from countries such as Brazil, making improvements in productivity and quality increasingly important.
Redefining the Transition to Chemical-Residue-Free Cotton
One of the greatest barriers to regenerative and organic farming has been the perceived loss of yield during the transition period.
Prakalp Sanjeevani addresses this challenge through an integrated biological approach that combines soil conditioning, enhanced microbial activity, biologically enriched farmyard manure, and crop management practices. The protocol restores soil structure, improves porosity and water-holding capacity, strengthens root development, and revitalises soil biology—enabling farmers to begin the transition without compromising productivity.
Unlike conventional organic conversion, which may require several years before farmers realise economic benefits, the protocol focuses on delivering measurable improvements from the very first crop cycle.
Field Validation Demonstrates Practical Results
The protocol has been validated through collaborative field demonstrations involving farmers and industry partners.
Results presented at Bharat Tex highlighted:
- 20.6% average increase in cotton yield
- Approximately 50% increase in farmer net income
- Around 111% return on investment
- Average additional farmer income of ₹13,082 per acre
- Significant reduction in dependence on chemical fertilisers and crop protection chemicals while maintaining productivity.
These outcomes demonstrate that regenerative agriculture can be both environmentally sustainable and economically attractive for farmers.
Better Farming Produces Better Fibre
Beyond agronomic performance, the initiative also focuses on fibre quality.
Testing of cotton produced under the Prakalp Sanjeevani protocol indicated fibre characteristics that meet or exceed important quality parameters associated with premium Indian cotton, including fibre length, strength and uniformity. This provides confidence to spinning mills and textile manufacturers seeking high-quality, responsibly produced raw material.
The Textile Industry Has a Critical Role
Dr Ranka emphasised that sustainable cotton cannot remain solely an agricultural initiative.
Brands, textile mills, ginners, exporters and retailers all have an opportunity to become active participants in creating resilient cotton supply chains. Establishing demonstration farms, supporting farmer training, validating fibre quality and creating demand for chemical-residue-free cotton can accelerate adoption while strengthening traceability from farm to fashion.
A New Model for Sustainable Growth
As sustainability expectations continue to evolve globally, the textile industry requires raw materials that are not only traceable but also produced through regenerative practices.
Prakalp Sanjeevani demonstrates that improving soil biology, restoring natural nutrient cycles and reducing chemical dependence can simultaneously enhance farmer livelihoods, strengthen environmental outcomes and provide the textile sector with a reliable source of chemical-residue-free cotton.
The message emerging from Bharat Tex 2026 was clear: the future competitiveness of Indian cotton will depend not only on what happens in spinning and weaving, but on what happens in the soil.
Through collaborative action across the textile value chain, India has the opportunity to establish a globally differentiated model that combines agricultural regeneration, premium fibre quality and sustainable textile manufacturing.