Pima pilot project under way for Haelixa in Peru
Traceability solutions provider Haelixa has set up a new pilot project to help raise the profile of sustainable cotton producers in Peru.
Part of a wider initiative launched in 2019 by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) to enhance transparency and traceability in the garment and footwear industry, Haelixa will work with a Peruvian cotton cooperative called Costach and textile manufacturer Creditex to mark and trace high-quality Pima cotton.
Haelixa’s technology uses a DNA marker and a blockchain system to embed information about a material’s origin into products. In this case, the marked cotton will be used to make exclusive pyjama sets for clothing brand Cat’s Pajamas.
Costach is the main cooperative of cotton farmers in Peru, consisting of 5,200 family farmers in the Piura region in the north of the country who produce mostly extra-long Pima cotton fibres.
On announcing the new pilot project, Haelixa’s chief technology officer and co-founder, Gediminas Mikutis, said: “For brands traceability provides not only an important mechanism to support their sustainability claims, but is also a great starting point for storytelling, giving their partners in the supply chain a face and voice.”
