October 01, 2021
For the past three years we've been working with the Good Growth Company to develop supply chain solutions that addresses some of the global challenges we all face. During this time we lent our experience of animal fibre supply chains to a great team led by Nick and Mandar, and set about trying to rewrite business models that are failing the planet and many of the people involved.
Good Growth's new approach builds on Khunu's original community-based model by using science to tackle degraded ecosystems and bring them back to health. It is based on what an ecosystem will sustain, not what can be extracted from it. In Mongolia, where our focus will be, years of buyer-generated demand for cashmere has led to goat herds that are too large for the environment to sustain over the long-term. This has caused damage to local ecosystems that at best may take years to recover, and at worst will be irreparable.
In a major break from conventional supply chains, the new focus will be on regenerating specific ecosystems by considering and working with the full complement of materials that come from that place (all animal fibres, all grades). In practice this means that Good Growth and Khunu will work with all of the fibre in the place – yak, goat, camel, sheep etc – and create greater value for the herders whilst maintaining a healthy ecosystem.
The project is backed by Kering and Conservation International's Regenerative Fund for Nature, and supported by Good Growth partners AVSF and WCS.
Needless to say we are delighted to now have the support of a range of talented partners with the same vision we set out with over a decade ago. From January 2022 all Khunu products will have begun their journey from a Good Growth ecosystem in Mongolia, from where they will have made their way to the UK for final production. We will continue to support Tibetan communities in other ways, through a new brand and different product mix, and as always we thank you for your continued support over the years.
