Cotton Distributors Inc.
About
Foundation
Founded in 1957 in Lausanne, Switzerland, CDI was originally one of various international companies belonging to the MUSTAKI family. From its inception, CDI benefited from the contacts, expertise and financial means of the group which for more than a century dealt not only in raw cotton but also in other commodities, consumer and capital goods, financial operations and barters. More recently, CDI has regrouped the cotton activities of its sister companies.
Years 70-80
CDI was initially very active in merchandising raw cotton from Egypt, Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania. We then extended our activities to French speaking West African countries, starting with Benin in 1972. In 1985 we became a selling agent for Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso raw cotton. In this capacity, we were successful in opening new outlets for cotton originating from these countries and we have now been trading in cotton from these geographies for more than 10 years.
Years 70-Today
During the past fifty years, CDI has continued to develop its activities in South American countries, including MERCOSUR countries and also Andean and Caribbean countries. At the beginning of 1999, the company was purchased by four members of the management team (Management Buy Out). Three of whom retired in 2004, 2011 and 2015. It is now held by Laurent Peyre who is active in the managing of the company. In 2014, we strengthened our presence in Brazil with the opening of our “CDI do Brasil” branch.
Network
What we do
CDI trades with all cotton producing countries, but in particular :
Sustainability
Community & Human Rights
CDI has joined forces with the Assocation des Amis de Songpelsé and the AFSUD (Assocation Song-Taaba des Femmes Unies et Développement) to respond to certain problems that Burkina Faso faces, notably in the creation of wells to provide access to drinkable water and also in the construction of a 6th school class in the village of Goghin2 in the township of Tanghin-Dassouri.
The vast majority of the population of Burkina Faso lives from agriculture and in more and more difficult conditions due to the lack of water: The difficulties of cultivation linked to climate change resulting in water shortage combined with the unavailability of fertile land, makes it harder and harder to the local population to live in decent environments. The school enrollment rate has increased from 32% in 2010 to 47.3% in 2021 in Burkina Faso and the targets are to increase further sensibly rapidly.
Primary education has become a government priority. The government is making efforts to increase the number of children enrolled in school, particularly by training teachers. The number of teachers is increasing significantly. The number of classes and schools has also increased thanks to external support.
Our commitment
CDI is an active member of Better Cotton Initiative ( BCI ) , Cotton Made In Africa (CMIA ), Brazil ANEA, AFCOT, ICA, Bremen Cotton Association. We adopted and are committed to their codes of conducts which are promoting safe trading and a sustainable cotton chain.
We are trading Cotton for more than 65 years and we are concerned by sustainability with our partners, cotton farmers, ginners and spinners.
We are tackling the complex challenges that cotton farmers, ginners and spinners face daily, including pollution, labour rights, water management, pesticides use, soil depletion and climate change, gender inequality, poverty and child labor.
CDI is addressing these challenges on the ground, working hand-in-hand with the men and women who make their living from cotton, focusing on where we can make a difference: turning cotton into a business of choice, creating inclusive and empowered communities and educating our partners when necessary.
In doing so, we are growing opportunities for cotton farmers and their families, by tackling all these problems together.
CDI is a proud member of
