John Lewis is to fund a sustainable cashmere programme in Inner Mongolia run by non-profit international organisation the Sustainable Fibre Alliance (SFA). The three-year programme will support the expansion of the SFA’s new Cashmere Standard from Mongolia to the Inner Mongolia region of China. John Lewis said it will fund the training of 420 herders in Inner Mongolia, which will be provided by animal welfare NGO the International Cooperation Committee of Animal Welfare (ICCAW), along with experts from a local agricultural university.