The COVID-19 pandemic and its reflections on the organic cotton production chain

Abstract:

With the COVID-19 pandemic, many productive sectors were impacted and had to make changes to survive in the context of uncertainties, including organic agriculture. Thus, the objective of the research was to highlight the changes in the organic cotton production chain arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. The research characterizes by a qualitative approach based on a case study on the production chain of the Justa Trama cooperative, which has production links in different regions of Brazil. Data collection was carried out through semi-structured interviews with six people, one from each link. Data were interpreted using content analysis by analysis categories, according to pre-defined keywords. It was concluded that the pandemic changed the way of working in the links, but there was no damage to Justa Trama. In addition, the organic cotton production chain is subject to some challenges, such as drought, lack of technical assistance, little incentive to adhere to organic producton, and difficulty finding qualified labor. These are relevant points found in the research, which indicate the need for workers in the production chain to access public policies and funding.

Keywords:
productive chain; organic agriculture; organic textile sector; COVID-19 pandemic