The German demand for cotton textiles plays a major role in water scarcity and pollution in the producing countries. Based on the work of the InoCottonGROW research project in Pakistan, the documentary shows how the water footprint can be reduced along the cotton-textile supply chain.

Pakistan is the fourth-largest cotton producer in the world and a major supplier of textiles for Germany. The irrigation of the cotton plants as well as the dyeing and finishing processes in textile production require large amounts of water. Rivers, soils and groundwater are also polluted by salinization, pesticides, fertilizers and the discharge of untreated textile wastewater.

The joint project InoCottonGROW aimed to contribute to the sustainable use of water along the cotton-textile value chain – from the cotton field, to the textile industry, to wastewater treatment. The research project was accompanied by a documentary, filmed in Pakistan, that presents technologically, economically and institutionally feasible ways to increase the efficiency and productivity of water use along the entire cotton-textile value chain. The film is intended to inform international brands, retailers and, last but not least, German consumers about sustainable textile consumption.