An ex-Soviet nation, Uzbekistan is the world's sixth-largest producer of cotton. Since the Soviet era, production targets have led to forced labor and a heavy environmental toll. While child labor was notably wound down under pressure from an international boycott, state employees were still called up every year to satisfy cotton quotas. And still hundreds of western apparel and textile firms are part of a decade-long boycott of cotton from the country over forced and child labor practices, following a campaign by activists against this.