Concept Paper for Icco
First draft, August 5, 2007

Textile and Apparel Co-operative

in a joint venture with an

Organic Cotton Growers Co-operative

A development initiative in the Artibonite Valley, Haiti

1. Introduction
2. Project overview
3. Project team
3.1 The women’s group of Verrettes
3.2 Turtle Tree Foundation
3.2.1 Turtle Tree Foundation board
4. Potential NGO alliances
4.1 Hôpital Albert Schweitzer
4.2 Lemuel Swiss
4.3 Naar School in Haiti (Going to School in Haiti)
5. Market overview
5.1 Haiti’s position in the global apparel market
5.2 Market for baby & children’s clothes and accessories
5.3 Target group
5.4 Product & Design
5.5 Designers
5.6 Business Strategy
6. Organic Cotton farming
6.1 History of Haiti’s cotton
6.2 Objectives of the Organic Cotton Growing Cooperative
6.3 Organizational structure of the joint venture
6.4 Potential obstacles for organic cotton growing
6.5 Political and economic perspectives on Haiti’s cotton
7. Investments, preliminary estimates
7.1 The start-up of the cooperatives
7.2 Future expansion and investment needs
8. Executive summary

For Haitian-Creole translation,
please contact Ton Vriens, <a href=”mailto:info@turtletree.nl”>info@turtletree.nl</a>

1. Introduction

A group of disadvantaged women in the town of Verrettes, a major center in the Artibonite Valley, has inspired this business initiative. The group consists of 73 women who are attending a local institute, Le Bon Samaritain, that provides vocational training. Other women in Verrettes, who have graduated from the institute or are involved as teachers or personnel, are part of the group as well.

At present, almost all Haitians suffer from the political instability and economic fragility. But, the women of the group even more so because they are single parents, a large number are HIV positive or have AIDS, and many are the sole provider for an extended family.

Prospects for the women to find work after the vocational training at Le Bon Samaritain are bleak. Haiti’s unemployment stands at over 70%. By now, one out of five Haitians fled the country. The brain drain has taken away potential leadership and entrepreneurs.

Foreign investments are at an all time low. Over the last fifteen years US apparel manufacturers have closed operations in Haiti one after the other.

Haiti’s lackluster appeal to foreign capital and manufacturers from abroad may provide a unique and historical opportunity to come to a new way of doing business: one that involves workers as owners and builds democracy at grassroots level.

In this concept paper we explore the potential of a small worker-owned business that is geared towards exports and that holds a promise for replication and/or expansion elsewhere in Haiti.

Turtle Tree Foundation (a new foundation in the Netherlands established for the purpose of realizing this plan), in collaboration with the women from Verrettes, is developing plans for a cooperative in textile and apparel manufacturing. In addition, we intend to revitalize the growing of organic cotton in the Artibonite Valley and organize farmers into a cotton growing cooperative.

The textile cooperative and the cotton growing cooperative are seen as a joint venture that will provide mutual support and an added economic rationale.

A local textile and apparel company will add value to the locally grown cotton. The creation of a local demand for cotton will result in fair prices and a more consistent income for the farmers.

A supply of locally grown cotton will make the manufacturing process of textiles and apparel more dependable and therefore more cost-effective. Importing organic cotton will cause unavoidable delays and adds the extra costs for transportation.

We opt for the Artibonite Valley because the region offers some definite advantages. The valley is blessed with fertile lands and it has a functioning water-irrigation system. Cotton growing in the valley, especially around the town of Gonaives, has been successful in the past. There is good connection by road to the port of Port-au-Prince and no rivers have to be crossed between Verrettes and the capital. The population in the area is poor but they have traditionally been a little bit better off than the rest of Haiti. Last but not least, the women’s group of Verrettes is well organized, well trained and extremely motivated to form their own business.

In the concept developed with the women of Verretttets we are focusing on making high-quality children’s and baby clothing as well as accessories. The goods will be made from organic materials for export to the US and Europe, and marketed to the growing consumer group that is willing to spend more for products that are certified organic and carry a Fair Trade label.

We believe that the joint venture of the two cooperatives could serve as a business model to other communities, because it provides a sustainable economic development that preserves Haiti’s environment – one of the country’s rare assets — and brings democratization to the workplace strengthening the community. In addition, if offers a synergy between agriculture and production.

The following is not a full-fledged business plan, but a concept paper that introduces key partners and potential alliances and gives an overview of a possible market and business strategy. The paper is meant to open up a dialogue and invites your feedback.

2. Project overview

The Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative, in a partnership with Turtle Tree Foundation, a Dutch foundation, will specialize in weaving, embroidery, cut and sew and the crafting of accessories from organic cotton and other locally grown materials (e.g. bamboo, sisal, banana leaves)

Products will include baby carriers, baby blankets and quilts, children’s and baby hats, socks and onesies. The products are made for export and cater to high-end luxury markets in the US and Europe.

Turtle Tree Foundation will attract start-up capital, bring in designers and marketing know-how and focus on the export and sales of the goods.

The Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative will organize farmers in the region in a cotton growing cooperative and form a joint venture.

The cotton supplied by this agricultural cooperative will allow for shorter supply lines of the material and better pricing. The demand by the Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative for locally grown organic cotton offers a new cash crop for the farmers in the region. At present there is no domestic or international market for cotton from Haiti.

The joint venture involves three separate economic activities:

A. The Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative.
Producing high-end, mostly hand-made products for the luxury market. In the first year of operation a group of 60 to 70 workers could produce about 15,000 to 20,000 pieces of high-quality accessories and baby clothes at an estimated wholesale value of around 15 to 20 US dollars per piece.

B. The Organic Cotton Growing Cooperative in the Artibonite Valley.
The farmers will cultivate and maintain new cotton fields for which they will receive technical assistance, crop insurance and pre-harvest financial guarantees. The demand for cotton from the apparel business alone could reach 3,000 to 4,000 pounds (lb) of cotton in the first year of operation. If the farmers would use intercropping with other crops, such as sweet potato and peanuts, an average harvest of 150 pounds (lb) raw cotton per acre should be attainable. This would mean a total of about 30 acres has to be farmed for cotton, providing about thirty to forty farmers with an extra income.

C. The cleaning and spinning of the yarn.
The raw cotton will be carded (cleaned) at a central location. We need to hire a crew for this seasonal job. In the start-up phase the cotton will be spun by hand into yarn by workers who have no other means of participating in any economic activity, including handicapped, HIV-patients and the elderly. The Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative will set up a distribution system that delivers the carded cotton to the workers’ homes and the cooperative will organize training and provide the spindles. The carding and spinning will generate some income for an estimated 300 to 400 citizens in and around Verrettes and Gonaives.

The start-up costs of the project, including financial and technical support of the farmers, are estimated at between US$ 250,000 and US$300,000 in total for the first three years of operation; or about $80,000 to US$ 100,000 per year before the point of break-even.

The investment in the joint venture of the two cooperatives will provide a sustained economic development to the communities of the Artibonite Valley that could not be matched by a similar investment in any other sector, industrial or agricultural.

Once established, the project will look to expand to other, more deprived areas of Haiti, such as the mountains of La Selle where the Dutch foundation Naar School in Haiti (Going to School in Haiti) is located.

3. Project team

3.1. The women’s group of Verrettes

The women of Verrettes who will be the workers and owners of the cooperative, have been brought together by the Centre de formation et de la promotion féminine Le Bon Samaritain (Center for schooling of women, the Good Samaritan).

Mona Pierre, a native of Verrettes, started the institute in 2002. Madame Pierre lived for a long time in France, but returned to Haiti to support disadvantaged women by providing vocational training.

The women (73 at the moment) are taught sewing and other skills such as embroidery and knitting. The institute receives a yearly subsidy from a French foundation, Accueil et Partage, that allows for three teachers and some materials. A local protestant church helps the institute as well and provides workspace. Nevertheless, the institute is permanently under-funded and it is still in operation only due to the persistence of the participants.

In a plenary meeting with the women in March of this year, the project was introduced by Madame Pierre, amended and voted on. There was a consensus that each of the workers would have a say and a vote in this new enterprise but that everyone would also be responsible for the output and quality of the production. There was a clear understanding that this would not be a charity operation financed by a foreign NGO and that the cooperative will have to perform as a competitive business in order to survive. The women were also in agreement that the cooperative will aim to contribute to the communities that they belong to. The cooperative intends to make investments in health care, vocational training and education — as much as possible.

The women of Verrettes are strongly motivated to make this project work. They have demonstrated the willingness to learn and to regularly attend the vocational training at the institute.

Mona Pierre, the initiator and director of the institute, has a very good rapport with the women and offers them pragmatic, wise and democratic leadership. She is well aware of what goes on in their often problematic households. Her enthusiasm and drive has helped the participants in the institute overcome many obstacles. Madame Pierre and her husband, Cléophat Herbé, an agronomist who runs a local reforestation project (HTRIP) and who was the former director of community relations at HAS, are both well-respected leaders in the community of Verrettes.

The high level of political socialization of this disadvantaged women’s group in Verrettes holds a promise that their venture will be more than an income-generating project. The cooperative intends to build democracy at the grassroots level. The group would welcome training and assistance in this area as well in order to become leaders and organizers in their communities.

3.2. Turtle Tree Foundation

The Turtle Tree Foundation (Turtle Tree Stichting, in Dutch) is a new foundation registered in the Netherlands. Its primary mission is to initiate businesses in impoverished areas. The Trust is presenting this plan on behalf of a partnership with the women’s group in Verrettes. The Trust has made a commitment to assist in the start-up of the Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative and the combined plan to organize farmers in an Organic Cotton Growing Cooperative.

The Turtle Tree Foundation (the name derives from a Mayan legend and stands for protection and growth) sees its role as jump starter of this sustainable economic project. We will advance the interests of the cooperative best by bringing in designers and marketing know-how, making connections with interested parties, and identifying business opportunities. As a secondary goal, we intend to promote the cooperatives in the media, to raise awareness of the hardships in developing countries and to inform about possible approaches for improvements.

The board of the Trust is formed by three members: Ton Vriens, Frank Bierens, and Siebren Hodes, who bring to this business initiative a combined experience in research, journalism, publishing, fashion and social entrepreneurship.

The Trust’s tasks, in collaboration with the Verrettes women:
1) Developing of the concept and business plan.
2) Presenting the plans to agencies, NGOs, and potential partners.
3) Connecting the Verrettes group with Western designers and other interested parties that could either become a customer, a business partner, or a consultant in achieving a level of professionalism.
4) Initiating, and reviewing contractual agreements.
5) Fundraising, including attracting marketing know-how and locating financing and loans to start-up the cooperatives.
6) Publicizing the project and attracting media attention.

The Trust will enter into an agreement with the cooperatives to define its role as a partner in the long term.

3.2.1. Turtle Tree Foundation board

Ton Vriens, New York, USA ((TurtleTreeTrust@aol.com)
Freelance journalist and documentary filmmaker.
Contributes regularly to two television programs, Fashion File and Fashion TV, about the fashion industry that are syndicated worldwide.
Writes for a Dutch newspaper NRC-Handelsblad (previous long reports about the political and social situation in Haiti: ‘Beyond the Mountains’, January 2007; ‘The last days of Jean-Bertrand Aristide as President of Haiti’, March 6, 2004)
Recent television documentaries:
‘To Live in Terror’, 2002, about the terrorist attacks on the Jewish community in Buenos Aires in the 90’s and the bungled investigation.
‘Looking for Victoria’, 2004, about an Argentine young woman who lost her parents during the dictatorship
‘Going to School in Haiti’ (work in progress with EO), about Marijke Zaalberg and her schools in the mountains of La Selle.
‘The innocence of Frances Newton’, a book and documentary about a mother in Texas who was executed in 2005, to be published by de Groene (a Dutch weekly magazine) and Uitgeverij Balans with a grant from Fonds voor Bijzondere Journalistiek (a Dutch foundation supporting investigative journalism)
Founder of Turtle Tree Foundation, a Dutch foundation that defines its mission as jump-starting worker-owned sustainable businesses in impoverished communities and reporting about it.

Frank Bierens, Amsterdam, the Netherlands (frank.bierens@ucnl.nl)
Publisher of the largest and most successful online youth magazine Spunk and Spunk boeken (Spunk Books); both consistently aim at raising awareness among Dutch youth of Third World issues.
Producer of a TV-series for MTV and Dutch schools with Dutch rapper Ali B who informs about the difficult circumstances of young people in developing countries.
Partner and initiator of foundation BIBECK (www.Bibeck.nl) who founded, in collaboration with ICS, UBF, UAACC, Mkombozi and private investors, the Kilimanjaro Film School and Company.

Siebren Hodes, Amsterdam, the Netherlands (siebren@dahl.nl)
Producer at Dahl TV (http://www.dahl.nl) a company that produces the highly popular consumer affairs program Keuringsdienst van Waarde for RVU, a public broadcaster as well as Klootwijk aan Zee.
The company made headlines by its actions against slavery and exploitation of children in the chocolate industry and has launched its own slavery-free chocolate in the Netherlands.
Former TV producer/researcher at VPRO (public broadcaster in the Netherlands)

4. Potential NGO alliances

4.1. Hôpital Albert Schweitzer

The Hôpital Albert Schweitzer (HAS) is located in Deschapelles, about five miles from Verrettes. Larry and Gwen Mellon, an American couple, founded the hospital in 1956. Larry Mellon was the heir of an influential family in Pittsburgh that was invested in banks, steel and Gulf Oil. The Mellons found inspiration in Albert Schweitzer’s philosophy of reverence for all living things, and his example of selfless service. Since the founders passed away, HAS is overseen by the Grant Foundation.

Major contributors in Europe to HAS are two Swiss organizations “Bündner Partnerschaft” and “Bieler Partnerschaft”. HAS is part of the Haiti Platform in the Netherlands, an informal group of NGOs who are lobbying in the Netherlands and in Europe for more support for Haiti.

The hospital has 190 beds and provides a full range of medical services, including surgery and pediatric services. It has a laboratory, X-ray equipment, and a pharmacy. The hospital employs a staff of about one thousand, of which the majority is Haitian.

In the second half century of its remarkable existence the hospital has expanded in setting up community health centers in the region.

The board and management of HAS is committed to support economic initiatives in the region, recognizing that the main origin of many illnesses is poverty.

One of the advantages of a connection with HAS would be to gain access to its considerable international network. Also, HAS has been granted special privileges by the Haitian government for bringing in goods from abroad. The hospital has its own shipping office in Port au Prince that takes care of a swift import and transport of goods.

However, at this point no formal agreement with HAS is on the table. The hospital is facing acute financial problems and is unfortunately not able to provide medical services for free anymore. These problems may prevent the board from taking on more responsibilities.

4.2. Lemuel Swiss

Verein Lemuel Swiss (www.lemuel.ch) is a small foundation with four vocational training centers in Haiti, including two in the Artibonite Valley (in Pont Sondé and Desarmes) and one in the DR. Reverend Gerhard Schippert and his wife Cornelia founded the foundation in 2000. The vocational training they provide focuses on sewing skills. In addition, Lemuel Swiss offers general courses about health and hygiene and bible studies. Lemuel Swiss raises its funds primarily through churches in Switzerland. They also have two production centers in Labranle and Port-au-Prince where bags and clothes are manufactured. The Schipperts sell the goods through charities and churches in Europe.

Lemuel Swiss could be a valuable partner for the Verrettes cooperative:
- It is experienced in vocational training and has qualified teachers on staff.
- Graduates from its centers could become workers at the Verrettes cooperative.
- It has established sales outlets in Europe.

4.3 Naar School in Haiti (Going to school in Haiti)

The Dutch foundation Naar School in Haiti (Going to school in Haiti) has established a network of small primary schools south of Kenscoff in the Massif de la Selle. In this remote mountain area children never had access to schooling before. Marijke Zaalberg founded the operation in 1998. Now about 900 children are attending the schools and receiving some basic education in French and Creole.
Naar School in Haiti is part of the Haiti Platform in the Netherlands.

Although the workers of Naar School in Haiti are absorbed by the challenges of their difficult mission, we share the same long-term objectives. Marijke Zaalberg and her Haitian staff believe, as we do, that providing education has to be accompanied by new business initiatives in the area that will provide employment and the possibilities for further training. If not, there will be no future prospects for the children when they grow up and leave school.

The population in this remote mountain area is suffering from severe hardship. The region is disadvantaged in every economic and social aspect compared to the relative prosperity of the Artibonite Valley. If at one point the Verrettes’ cooperative were able to share its workload with a group of workers here, it would prove its value in developing businesses elsewhere in Haiti.

We want to extend the work of our Verrettes’ cooperative at one point to the area that is being served by Naar School in Haiti. Mrs. Zaalberg has introduced us to a number of seamstresses in the area. A group of about twenty women are interested to become involved in the production of the Verrettes’ cooperative, either by handling an overflow of work or by specializing in making certain parts or items. The presence of Marijke Zaalberg and her Haitian staff and the goodwill they have in these communities will facilitate building a network and establishing an organization in this area.

5. Market overview

5.1 Haiti’s position in the global apparel market

American textile industries used to operate a number of large sweatshops in Haiti, but in the last fifteen years one after the other plant shut down due to political turmoil. An estimated 150,000 jobs have been lost. US Congress recently passed a law that aims to provide an incentive to the textile industry to return to Haiti.

The law, the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity Through Partnership Encouragement Act, or HOPE went into effect in March 2007. Before the HOPE Act, Haiti was limited to exporting garments made of American fabric duty-free into the US. The HOPE Act allows duty-free entrance to Haitian-produced garments that use fabric from countries with free-trade agreements with the US.

But, observers of the textile and apparel industry have expressed doubts that foreign manufacturers will return to Haiti. The HOPE Act has been described as too little, too late.

The textile and apparel industry is a cutthroat competition, operating in a truly global market and scouting developing countries by the season to get ever better and cheaper suppliers.

Haiti is not an easy place for foreign manufacturers. The price of imported oil, the broken infrastructure, the red tape and notorious inefficiency of its administration, are all negative factors resulting in higher costs of production. Despite its very depressed wage structure, the country remains a relatively expensive environment compared to other developing nations, like Guatemala or Nicaragua.

There are however signs of a turnaround in Haiti. Positive measures and developments that could be beneficial for the start up of our cooperative are the following:

With its insertion into the Caribbean Common Market (Caricom), Haiti has become more accessible for US partners who want to use Haiti as a hub to enter the Caribbean. Haiti has not much of a home market left for luxury items, but some other nearby nations like Jamaica, do. It may be attractive to American companies to use Haiti to enter the entire Caribbean market with goods made in Haiti, and eventually penetrate the Mercosur.

Another consideration for American or European partners is the existence of an investment law in Haiti, prohibiting fiscal and legal discrimination against foreign investors. The law acknowledges the crucial role of foreign investment in assuring economic growth and aims to facilitate, liberalize, and stimulate private investment in Haiti by offering benefits to enterprises in agriculture, craft making, tourism and other “special” sectors. New enterprises in these sectors may benefit from license exemptions as well as customs and tariff advantages depending on their physical location and the market for which they produce.

The Haitian investment law could be an important incentive for a foreign partner of our cooperative. We will benefit as well from The HOPE Act. Since it can be foreseen that in the first years of production not all materials can be produced locally by Haitian organic cotton growers, some fabric will have to be imported.

The most important factor that will have a positive impact on the start-up of our cooperatives is the gradual stabilization of the political situation in Haiti. Although the general perception of Haiti as remaining in a permanent state of turmoil is supported by occasional news reports about kidnappings and armed conflicts between the UN forces and local gangs, the Préval administration has demonstrated the will to tackle the armed gangs and to weed out corruption among the police. Haiti is still far from having a functional law enforcement and justice system. But the administration seems to have staying power and several cabinet ministers are seen as motivated to make hard needed changes. The present minister of agriculture, Francois Severin, is amongst a group of these new technocrats, who could initiate a new era for Haiti.

5.2 The market for baby and children’s clothes and accessories

The market for baby and children’s clothes and accessories is one of the fastest growing in the garment and apparel industry. An interesting characteristic of the retail business in baby and children’s clothes is that more than 50% are single ownership stores in the high end of the US market.

These owners shop for small quantities but are always looking to display something new in their stores. This bodes well for the Verrettes cooperative. If the cooperative can be provided with smart and unique designs for special hand-made items, we may be able to sell to the high-end children and baby boutiques in the US. Our marketing will highlight the background of our cooperatives to generate attention from the media and to become a story that attracts buyers.

5.3 Target group

The expectation is that the market for baby and children’s clothes and accessories made of organic fabric will grow rapidly. Sophisticated consumers increasingly prefer organic products. This segment of the market of the so-called ‘cultural creatives’ is aware that consumer purchases involve ethical choices. These consumers are willing and financially able to pay a premium price if the product is guaranteed to be a Fair Trade product, is being made in an environmentally responsible way, and certified organic. In addition to the ethical element involved in consumer purchases, there is also the consideration that it may be more healthy for babies and children to wear and be in touch with organic materials.

If our cooperative can make goods that are of a high quality, certified organic, hand-made, and with a Fair Trade label, a relatively high retail price will be justified. The premium price will compensate somewhat for the fact that Haiti is not the cheapest place to manufacture and that our cooperative cannot mass- produce. We will have to reach out to this niche market, given the influx of well-made and relatively inexpensive apparel from Asia and countries like Peru.

5.4. Product & Design

The cooperative will work with designs that require fine handwork. Although sewing machines and other machine tools will be needed, the strength of our production will be the craftsmanship of the workers in fine embroidery and decorating of accessories and garments.

Potential products that are being looked into are: baby carriers, baby blankets, baby and children’s quilts, baby and children hats and socks, and onesies for babies (ask any parent in the West what the single best baby item is and chances are you will get a unanimous vote of baby onesies).

Recent success stories of textile and apparel businesses in African countries – e.g. Rwanda Knits received a start up grant from USAID and makes scarves for Diane von Furstenberg’s flagship boutique in New York and Abera, an Ethiopian designer whose work is imported in the US by EDI – have proven that by marrying African traditional styles with Western concepts it is possible to break into the western luxury markets.

5.5. Designers

We want to connect the Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative with some well known brand designers from New York who will explore ways of working together with the Haitian women and design with them specific products that use the artisanship and cultural heritage of the women.

Two New York top designers with well-established businesses, Norma Kamali and Cynthia Rowley, have expressed an interest in working with our cooperative. They are willing to look into the feasibility of commissioning the cooperative with a line of baby and children accessories. These designers are willing to work with our cooperative to explore their strengths and capabilities and to make designs that are a good match for the women.

The designers would commission work in certain small manageable quantities that will help the cooperative to make a start.

We are also exploring the possibility of commissioned work from other established artists and artisans who produce a small line of hand-made goods that require high quality craftsmanship.

In order to meet the exacting standards of these designers we will have to find ways to bring in specialized training that will hone the skills of the cooperative to perfection. For this we have contacted textile instructor and consultant Hetty Oom. Mrs. Ooms is a volunteer of PUM, a Dutch agency that ‘lends’ senior consultants to start up businesses in developing countries. Through PUM Mrs Ooms could be approached by the cooperative for advice and training. In addition, Lemuel Swiss, the NGO that operates several vocational training centers in Haiti, could possibly bring in their teachers for further training of the workers of the cooperative.

5.6. Business strategy

The advantage of taking on commissioned work from established foreign companies would be that it jumpstarts the production capacity of the group and will open the door to some commercial financiers.

There may be some downsides to this approach. It could result in a dependency on a single customer and it may not guarantee a consistent demand in the long run.

Perhaps we will have to consider the alternative option of establishing our own line and creating our own identity in foreign markets. In the long run, the independence of selling directly to retailers (and/or consumers via the internet) could provide more stability to our enterprise and higher proceeds. But it is an uncertain road with many pitfalls. At this point in time, this strategy may present too many obstacles for a start-up and probably requires too much of an investment.

As an intermediate phase, we should also look into the possibilities of working directly with specialized importers, as some African cooperatives have done. More research is necessary to make final decisions in this.

6. Organic cotton farming

6.1. History of Haiti’s cotton

Haiti, once called the Perle des Antilles (Pearl of the Antilles) by the French colonizers because of its bounty of coffee, cacao and cotton was still a major exporter of cotton in the 1930s, before Mexican boll weevil beetles ravaged the crop.

Growers introduced a higher quality of cotton in the 1960s, which was processed in local cotton gins and then exported to Europe.

The cotton from Haiti had a very good reputation, quality wise and in terms of output. But when cotton prices fell in the 1980s, plantings shrank from 12,400 hectares in 1979 to under 8,000 hectares by 1986. By the late 1980s all cotton exports from Haiti had ended. An American-owned spinning mill and cotton gin (used to harvest cotton seed for cattle feed) in Gonaives closed as well.

Today, there are still cotton trees to be found in some rural areas, and a few fields with cotton plants, but most farmers have abandoned cotton and turned to other crops in order to survive. There is no local demand for cotton and the farmers don’t have access to export markets.

Haiti’s agriculture consists primarily of small subsistence farmers. The lots they cultivate they often share with other families. Also, there is often no clear title of ownership. Cash crops are grown in very limited volume because of the lack of infrastructure and lack of domestic demand.

6.2. Objectives of the Organic Cotton Growing Cooperative

The Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative will approach farmers to become suppliers of cotton. In the first year of operation, about 30 acres of cotton, intercropped with peanuts and sweet potatoes for example could result in a harvest of three to four thousand pounds (Lbs) of cotton. In the second and third year of operation these amounts could be tripled if the Verrettes Cooperative is able to expand as foreseen.

One other local user of organic cotton, an American-Haitian company, Bélizaire & Mellon, Coton de l’Artibonite, located in Deschapelles (near Verrettes), who in 2002 restarted the weaving of rugs made of cotton, would add a demand of 1500 to 2000 pounds (Lbs) of cotton.

6.3. Organizational structure of the joint venture

The farmers will be proposed to establish a cooperative with a democratic structure that is tied in to the organization of the Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative. Being organized in a cooperative will allow to provide technical assistance in a more efficient way.

The agricultural cooperative will be connected in its organization and decision-making to the Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative, which will serve as its main buyer. The Verrettes Apparel Cooperative will also make the financial arrangements with the Organic Cotton Growing Cooperative, including pre-harvest guarantees and harvest insurance.

6.4 Potential obstacles for organic cotton growing

Brian Flanagan and Matt van Geest, agricultural experts of the regional office of MCC (Mennonite Central Committee) who are involved in a long-term reforestation project, believe that the region holds great promise for starting up organic cotton growing again.

But, as they have pointed out, certification as organic may run into some problems because of the many small lots farmed by different families without holding a clear title. The key to revitalize the cotton growing would be to organize the farmers into a cooperative, to guarantee prices, to share the risk of a bad harvest, and to support them in intercropping with other crops, in order to minimize the risk of famine and last but not least to assist the farmers in protecting their lands against goats who devastate the cotton.

It would also be advisable for our cooperatives to come to an agreement and if possible partnership with the well-funded local rug company Bélizaire & Mellon, Coton de l’Artibonite with regard to the supply of local cotton.

The production of the rugs is lagging behind because the company has not been able to convince enough farmers to grow cotton.

A supply of local cotton is considered essential for the Verrettes cooperative in the long haul. Since the Verrettes women have some leverage within the community and will be the initiators of the agricultural cooperative, there is an expectation that the farmers will be willing to become partners in this venture.

In addition, several organizations working in Haiti are showing good results in organizing farmers in cooperatives. E.g. Action Aid is working with 1,400 farmers in the Thiotte region in Haiti to help them set up and run coffee cooperatives. By selling their coffee to the cooperatives, farmers can hope to get a sale price that is often 30% higher than if they sell to merchants. These cooperatives have also been instrumental in obtaining a Fair Trade label that results in higher prices.

6.5. Political and economic perspective on Haiti’s cotton

The increasing demand for organic cotton, especially for use in baby and children’s apparel, provides a (small) window of opportunity for developing countries. The big producers of cotton in the US, Australia, India and China – with their machine-driven agriculture, using enormous amounts of pesticides — are lagging behind in meeting the new demand for organic cotton. About 20% of all pesticides in the world are used for cotton and the mechanical harvesting adds to the pollution because the ripening of the cotton bulbs is speeded up with chemicals.

Haiti’s agricultural asset is the fact that the land is unspoiled and uncontaminated by pesticides for generations. In the Artibonite Valley, around Gonaives, where traditionally cotton was grown, an opportunity exists to revive the growing of organic cotton.

But cotton – organic or not — is not very lucrative for farmers anywhere in the world except in Europe and the US where cotton growers are heavily subsidized.

To strengthen the market position of organic and fair-trade cotton growers the Dutch NGO ICCO provides subsidies, loans and investment guarantees and offers knowledge and support. ICCO also provides a network that can be used by producers and importers of sustainable cotton to do business with each other. ICCO cooperates with Organic Exchange, an American organization that actively lobbies for companies to use more organic cotton. ICCO and Organic Exchange developed a Farm Development Programme aimed at increasing sales of organic and fair cotton from Africa, India and Latin America.

But Haiti is facing severe limitations in becoming a player in the niche market of organic cotton, because of the inefficient small scale of the farmlands and its inadequate infrastructure.

Revitalizing the farming of cotton in Haiti probably only makes economic sense if it concurs with the creation of a local demand.

7. Investment: preliminary estimates

7.1. The start-up of the cooperatives

The Verrettes Textile and Apparel Cooperative will need for the first three years of operation financing in the amount of US$ 75,000 per year in order to pay minimum wages to the workers of the cooperative. In addition we are facing some one-time investments in tools, sewing machines and materials.

The Organic Cotton Growing Cooperative will need pre-harvest guarantees, technical assistance and investment in protection of the lands in the estimated amount of US$ 10,000 to US$ 15,000 per year in the first three years.

A preliminary estimate brings a total of US$ 250,000 to US$ 300,000 for the first three years. An income from sales can only be expected in the second year of operation. In addition we will have to budget for technical assistance, vocational training, marketing consultancy etc. We aim at raising 50% of this investment via NGOs and 50% through commercial loans and private funds.

7.2.Future expansion and investment

It is foreseeable that the spinning of the cotton at one point will have to be mechanized. Research will have to be conducted in the purchase of a spinning machine and the establishment of a local spinning plant. In order to process the volume of cotton that we intend to grow in the Artibonite Valley a used spinning machine can be bought in the US for around US$ 150,000. This operation will require a supplemental business plan and extra financing.

8. Executive summary

Turtle Tree Foundation (a new foundation based in the Netherlands and established for the purpose of realizing this plan ), in collaboration with a group of disadvantaged women in the town of Verrettes in the Artibonite Valley, plans to form a cooperative in apparel and textile manufacturing. This cooperative will organize farmers in the Artibonite Valley in a cotton growing cooperative. The Trust will bring in designers and marketing know-how and raise the start-up capital.

The textile cooperative and the cotton growing cooperative are seen as a joint venture that will provide mutual support and an added economic rationale.

The cooperatives will be worker-owned.

Some advantages of starting the cooperatives in the Artibonite Valley:
- Its fertility and a well functioning water-irrigation system.
- Cotton growing in the valley has been successful in the past.
- A good connection by road to the port of Port-au-Prince.
- The women’s group of Verrettes is well organized, well trained and motivated to form their own business.

The cooperative intends on making high-quality children’s and baby clothing and accessories, commissioned by brand name designers in New York (Norma Kamali, Cynthia Rowley). The goods will be made from organic materials, for export to the US and Europe, and marketed to the growing consumer group that is willing to spend more for products that are certified organic and carry a fair trade label.

The start-up costs of the project, including financial and technical support of the farmers, are estimated at between US$ 250,000 and US$ 300,000 in total for the first three years of operation.

The investment in the joint venture of the two cooperatives will provide a sustained economic development to the communities of the Artibonite Valley that could not be matched by a similar investment in any other sector, industrial or agricultural. Once established, the project will look to expand to other, more deprived areas of Haiti.

Ton Vriens

On behalf of Turtle Tree Foundation

Mailing address:
Vriens/Turtle Tree Foundation
Columbia University
PO BOX 250327
New York NY 10025
info@turtletree.nl
Tel: (917) 488 8797