Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry Government of India invites applications for online Certificate Programe in export and import Business “Niryat bandhu @your desktop” unswe Niryat Bandhu Scheme
Source: The Economic Times
The groups have been asked to give suggestions on procedural simplifications and possible rate structure With the goods and services tax (GST) set to be rolled out from July 1, the government has set up 10 working groups to address the concerns of industry. The groups cover banking, telecom, exports, information technology, transport, textiles, MSMEs, gems and jewellery and services received and provided by the government. The groups have been asked to give suggestions on procedural simplifications and possible rate structure. The deadline of submitting reports by the groups is April 10. Some of the issues that would be tackled by the groups include how to handle services provided between establishments of the same entity without invoice or payment in certain sectors with high volumes of transactions when operations are spread across the country. The other matter is compliance challenges for small and medium sector in an automated environment, with end-to-end matching of invoices. Issues raised by sectors employing a large workforce and with vast disparity such as textiles will also be addressed. The oil industry’s concerns due to exclusion of some segments would also be deliberated on and could include production sharing contracts. Pratik Jain of PwC said, “The move will provide much needed clarity to the industry on sector specific issues. However, the timeline for submitting the report looks tight.”
Source: Business Standard
GST debate now continues on categorisation of products Mumbai: Is Parachute hair oil or edible oil? Is KitKat a chocolate or a biscuit? Is a Vicks tablet medicament or confectionery? For the taxpayer and the tax collector, this is much more than an exercise in semantics -hundreds of crores of rupees ride on the exact categorisation. As the government moves closer to rolling out the goods and services tax (GST) on July 1, many such distinctions are being debated so that no ambiguity remains. Not just that, the government is revisiting old tax cases that were lost over product categorisation, according to people with knowledge of the matter, presumably with a view to making sure that revenue collections can be maximised. “In the past, several tax officers had challenged some of the product categorisations, including those in the retail segment, but lost out in court or at appellate level,“ said one of the persons. “Now we have a chance to go ahead with specifying the products in a way based on the old cases so that similar situations don't arise“. It is understood that the product categorisation exercise, which was expected to have been completed last year, is taking much longer because of this process. The rates have already been decided -nil, 5%, 12%, 18% and 28% --but product categorisation is yet to be finalised. “The GST rates for each and every item are not yet decided as the government is categorising products and what rates can be applied on each category of goods,“ said MS Mani, senior director, Deloitte Haskins & Sells. “There is a chance that some of the old issues raised by the tax department regarding category of certain goods may come back to haunt some companies or products as GST is a new law and can redefine rates and what goods would fall under its preview.“ Some states have also raised issues on this front, Kerala being a case in point. During a recent closed-door meeting on product categorisation, finance minister TM Thomas Isaac brought up a point highly pertinent to people of that state. Coconut oil shouldn't be categorised as hair oil but as edible oil, he is reported to have said. The reason? Edible oil and hair oil are taxed differently as the latter is not an essential commodity. But coconut oil is an essential ingredient of Kerala cuisine, making its categorisation a matter of keen public interest for the state's people. Key past cases are being researched by the GST committee before it decides on the exact tax rates for each category , said the people cited above. This could mean disputes that many companies thought had been resolved coming back to life. Whether such moves will be challenged or not y the companies is yet to be seen. However, ex by the companies is yet to be seen. However, experts said this may be difficult since GST is a new tax regime altogether and old rulings may not have the force of precedent. Some of the old cases being examined involve Marico, P&G, Nestle, Paras Pharmaceuticals and Dabur, according to the people with knowledge of the matter. For the record: KitKat is a biscuit and Vicks a medicament. In the KitKat case -Nestle (India) Ltd vs Commissioner of Central Excise, Mumbai, 1999 -it was ruled that the product was a biscuit and not a chocolate, which is taxed at a higher rate. Meanwhile, companies are lobbying the government to categorise biscuits as essential products under GST, which would mean their being taxed at a lower 5%.
Source: The Economic Times
The Tiruppur garment cluster is hopeful of meeting its target of exporting apparel worth Rs 25,000 crore in fiscal 2017 after having exported clothing amounting to Rs 23,253 crore in the first 11 months of the fiscal beginning April 1. The cluster reported exports of only Rs 16,600 crore between April 1 and December 31, causing anxiety of reaching the target. "Now with sudden surge in exports, we are hopeful of meeting the target of Rs. 25,000 crore comfortably by March 31," a leading daily quoted the Tiruppur Exporters' Association president Raja Shanmugam as saying. "If not for the market slowdown, which happened subsequent to UK's decision to exit European Union and few other factors, the cluster could have reached an annual turnover of Rs. 28,000 crore," he added. According to the daily, India exported both woven and knitted garments totalling to Rs 104,443 crore in the 11 months to February 28, 2017, a growth of 3.5 per cent in rupee terms and 0.58 per cent in dollar terms, as against the same period of earlier fiscal.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
NEW DELHI: The Competition Commission has asked for filing of fresh application with respect to German major Bayer AG’s proposed $66-billion buyout of Monsanto. The deal, announced in September 2016, would create the world’s biggest seed and pesticide firm. A source at the Competition Commission of India (CCI) said the regulator has asked for re-submission of application with regard to seeking approval for the Bayer-Monsanto deal. Specific reasons for seeking fresh application could not be immediately ascertained. CCI can ask for filing of fresh application in cases of mergers and acquisitions citing lack of adequate information and certain other ground. When contacted, a Bayer spokesperson said the process in India is going through its regular course and “we are in dialogue with the Indian anti-trust authority in terms of the completeness of the data package”. “We are unaware of any rejection of the application for approval of the agreed merger. Please understand that we are not commenting on further details,” the spokesperson said in a statement. Mergers and acquisitions beyond a certain threshold require approval of the CCI. German chemical and pharma major Bayer and global biotech player Monsanto have presence in India, with the US firm selling genetically modified (GM) cotton seeds in the country for more than a decade. As per the earlier notice filed by Bayer before the CCI in October 2016, the “proposed combination raises no competitive concern in any of the overlap products”. In India, both entities have presence in production and sale of vegetable seeds, cotton seeds as well as in production and sale of non-selective herbicides, according to that notice. After months of negotiations, Bayer and Monsanto in September last year announced signing of a definitive merger agreement. Under the deal, Bayer would acquire Monsanto for $128 per share in an all-cash transaction, which translates into an aggregate value of $66 billion.
Source: Business Line
New Delhi: Retirement fund body Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will consider a proposal to amend the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act (EPF & MP Act) for making provident fund contributions optional for employees in apparel and made-ups sector at the trustees’ meet on next Thursday. However, the trade unions are against this move saying this would encourage such an exemption for other sectors as well in future and might defeat the purpose of retirement savings. “The proposal to amend the Act for implementing the Cabinet decision of making EPF contributions optional for employees earning less than Rs15,000 per month is listed on the agenda of EPFO’s trustees meet scheduled on 30 March, 2017,” a source said. Earlier last year in June, the Centre has brought a package for the textile and apparel sector which was later extended to made-ups also in December 2016. Among other sops in the package, it was announced that EPF shall be made optional for employees earning less than Rs15,000 per month in these segments. However it was a Cabinet decision but it could not be implemented without amending the EPF & MP Act 1952, the source said. In the present legal framework, the employees as well as employers contribute 12% each towards mandatory contributions towards social security scheme—EPF, EPS and EDLI—run by EPFO. Once approved by the CBT, the proposal would have to go through the floor test in both the Houses of Parliament. Commenting on the proposal, All India Trade Union Congress Secretary D. L. Sachdev said, “All central trade unions will oppose this proposal because it would start a new practice of making EPF contributions optional for a set of categories of employees. This will set a wrong precedent.” Besides, the EPFO’s apex decision making body, the Central Board of Trustees (CBT), headed by the labour minister would also take up a proposal of providing health cover to its around 50 lakh pensioners. Earlier, back of the envelope calculations done by ESI had estimated Rs200 monthly premium per person for providing health cover under its scheme to the EPFO pensioners. The proposal is aimed at providing health cover to EPFO pensioner, who get very little amount as pension and hence healthcare is out of their reach. Besides, the CBT will also discuss the proposal to cover scheme workers like Anganwadi and mid-day meal, under the social security schemes run by the EPFO.
Source: Livemint
Summary: For even a small testing, the textile machinery manufacturers and engineering firms have to visit either Mumbai or Ahmedabad. Now, the centre at Bardoli will provide all the testing and calibration-related facilities. "South Gujarat does not have testing and calibration centre and there is no laboratory for mechanical testing. Surat: Union minister of heavy industries, Anant Geete will lay the foundation stone of south Gujarat's first common engineering facility centre (CEFC) for textile machinery and allied engineering industry at Bardoli on Sunday.The CEFC will come up on five acres of land at Faculty of Engineering Technology and Research (FETR) at Bardoli, some 35 kilometres away from Surat. Through this centre, our aim is to help narrow down the gap and provide up-to-date and modern engineering products for the textile and engineering sectors. Surat: Union minister of heavy industries, Anant Geete will lay the foundation stone of south Gujarat's first common engineering facility centre (CEFC) for textile machinery and allied engineering industry at Bardoli on Sunday.The CEFC will come up on five acres of land at Faculty of Engineering Technology and Research (FETR) at Bardoli, some 35 kilometres away from Surat. The centre will be constructed at the cost of Rs 50 crore by Science Engineering and Technological Upliftment (SETU) foundation with the support of local industry associations like Surat Engineering Vikas Association (SEVA), Textile Machinery Manufacturers Association of India (TMMAI) and Sardar Vallabhai Patel Education Society, Bardoli.In December-2016, SETU foundation had signed an MoU with department of heavy industries, ministry of heavy industries and public enterprises, Government of India for setting up of the CEFC at Bardoli.The facility would enable textile machinery and other capital goods manufacturers to develop capital goods to meet the large requirements and improve capacity utilization, thereby reducing the variable cost of operation.Chairman of SETU, Hetal Mehta told TOI, "This is basically a product development-cum-training centre for upgrading our technology and quality of production, matching the global standards. This facility will help the MSME units in south Gujarat to improve their quality of products and efficiency with the use of advance engineering."The centre will provide facilities like product and prototype development, product and machine design boutique, skill development and training, material testing and calibration and heat treatment unit.SETU has tied up with France-based software company Top Solid Design Software whose 95 per cent of the softwares are used in aviation and ship building sectors worldwide. The company will provide software development support at the centre.The key objectives behind the CEFC is to develop prototype product, training and industry institute interaction, design support for critical component of textile and general machineries, automation consultancy for improving process efficiency and material testing and instrument calibration facilities.Mehta said, "Technology gap in India is more than 40 years compared to the rest of the developed countries. Through this centre, our aim is to help narrow down the gap and provide up-to-date and modern engineering products for the textile and engineering sectors."South Gujarat does not have testing and calibration centre and there is no laboratory for mechanical testing. For even a small testing, the textile machinery manufacturers and engineering firms have to visit either Mumbai or Ahmedabad.
Source: TOI, Nyoooz
Fire broke out at a cotton ginning and pressing factory in the MIDC area of Ghatanji tehsil of Yavatmal district today. The factory is owned by Shiv Agro Industries. Machinery and some 50 quintals of raw cotton on the premises were gutted, said a factory official. Three fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the blaze. Nobody was injured.
Source: PTI, The Hans India
If you’re looking at extending the concept of sustainability to what you wear, then there are two ends of the spectrum to work with: organic wear and apparel fashion with threads recycled from waste. Going hand-in-hand with these collections are upcycled garments — handmade and artisan-crafted clothing with ethical and fair-trade practices backing their businesses. When H&M’s Sustainability Manager, Elin Astrom, was in Delhi recently for the Amazon India Fashion Week to take us through the Conscious Exclusive collection, she spoke about what sustainable fashion really means to the brand.
Waste matters
This year, the collection — showcased in India for the first time — was all about Bionic, a new material developed from recovered shoreline waste. An installation showing off the material and enunciating its qualities was on view. Each piece is really a talking point — be it a netted bag, a belted black jacket or a simple white shirt, the fabric is lustrous. The Collection also has other sustainable materials, such as organic cotton and recycled polyester.
Closing the loop
“We don’t see conservation as a part of what we do. It is what we do — in everything we do. It runs through the production chain and is integrated across all functions,” says Astrom. H&M has tied up with the Better Cotton Initiative, a not-for-profit that makes growing cotton sustainable. A lot of the recycled collection is from the Garment Collect Initiative, where people have been encouraged to drop off old, worn clothes at a store. It’s the reason the brand has clothes for children too.
Garment care
Every H&M garment comes with a clevercare.info tag. The website details what each one of us can do to make our cleaning process less earth-destructive. While the ‘Don’t wash your clothes too often’ advice may not serve us well in India, other guidelines like lowering the temperature while machine-washing and avoiding dry-cleaning do apply.
SM
The Conscious Exclusive collection is in the ₹1,999 to ₹22,999 price range, and will be sold from April 20 onwards at High Street Phoenix, Mumbai and Select Citywalk, New Delhi
Source: The Hindu
The export of used textiles from the Nordic region, using circular economic principles to guide its policy efforts in the area, is found to add value to the vale chain and environment, reducing the region's GHG output by 193,000 tonnes CO2e and water use by 72 million cubic metres. In line with the reality of a finite set of resources and the destructive effect of their poor utilisation, from excessive waste to abusive exploitation, other options for economic growth and human wellbeing are being considered. One of the possibilities is the circular economy. The model focuses on limiting waste in the wider economy by reducing, reusing or recycling goods. This can be done by creating goods that are, among others, durable, repairable, upgradable, leverage sustainable materials and are recyclable down to the last screw. The value chain of a range of goods are open to transformation to meet circular economic principles, with some closer, in terms of practicalities, to being transformed than others. In a new report produced by Ramboll, titled ‘Exports of Nordic Used Textiles: Fate, benefits and impacts’, commissioned by the Nordic Council of Ministers, trends in the export of used clothing from Nordic countries to Europe and the rest of the world are considered in some detail. More than 100,000 tonnes of used textiles are collected each year in the Nordic states. The used clothing is collected through a range of charity organisations, that themselves use proceeds from the sale to fund their wider charitable activity. By weight the largest portion of the textiles (46%) are exported to Europe, Africa and the Middle East, the next largest segment, representing 15% of total weight and the lowest quality for reuse, are exported to Asia. 10% of the material by weight is used for industrial wipes, 8% for mechanical recycling and 8% for incineration. Around 10% of the weight represents the ‘cream’ of the crop of clothes, which end up for reuse in Europe.
First destination of Nordic exports of used textiles in 2014
In terms of the destination for Nordic exports of used textiles in 2014, Poland was by far the largest beneficiary at around 19,000 tonnes. Lithuania comes second, at around 11,000 tonnes, followed by Bulgaria and Estonia on around 7,000 and 6,500 tonnes respectively. Turkey is the only West and Central Asian country in the top ten, with Pakistan, in Eastern Asia, taking the number ten spot. African countries dot the list, with Malawi, Somalia, Ghana and Mozambique. The necessity of squeezing every cent from used textiles. The increase in supply of used textiles to the market has seen prices fall significantly in recent years. Resellers are increasingly needing to utilise the whole stock, including lowest quality for reuse and even the plastic bags in which produce comes, to improve their margin, which particularly in the upper bound can amount to $0.05 on per kilo.
Environmental and social impact of textile supply chain
The research found that the introduction of circular economic principles into the wider value chain of second hand textiles had a number of beneficial environmental impacts. In 2014 the practice led to an estimated net annual saving of 193,000 tonnes CO2e and 72 million cubic metres of water use, as well as wider mitigation of environmental impact that comes with the wider value chain of textile production. Benefit to the environment does come with a number of externalities however, particularly to African textile producers, whose products are undercut by cheaper and often better quality, used goods from Europe. However, while textile producers saw their operations negatively affected, the authors found that the processing of used imported textiles for wider redistribution into the regional populace across Africa created around 9,000 jobs directly, 1500 in sorting, 2000 in wholesale and 5500 in retail, and a further 10,000 in the informal sector, including market sellers and their families. David Palm Resource and Waste Management export at Ramboll, adds, "it was clear that even without used-textile imports, domestic African production would have been wiped out by cheap Asian imports anyway.” He further points out that used textiles are “now sold either directly to distributors in Eastern Europe, Africa, South America or Asia, or via commercial sorters in Europe. Selling the textiles rather than donating them means there is less risk that they will immediately become waste in the recipient country, although the issue of imported recycled textiles competing with domestic production still remains a possible concern.” He adds, “That said, it was clear that even without used-textile imports, domestic African production would have been wiped out by cheap Asian imports anyway.”
Source: Consultancy.Uk
Surat: Surat-based textile trader was cheated allegedly by three Mumbai-based traders to the tune of Rs 11.65 lakh. These traders from Mumbai ordered saris from Surat trader and did not make payment. According to the complaint registered on Thursday with Salabatpura police station, Honey Singhal of Urvashi Silk firm of Surat Textile market had supplied sarees to three Mumbai-based textile traders between October 7, 2015 to January 7, 2016. The accused were identified as Mahesh Kataria, Jayantibhai and Pankaj Bansali. This broker in the deal was Sunil Sharma of Dindoli, Surat. Kataria was supplied 907 pieces of saris worth Rs 7,73,800, Jayantibhai was supplied 121 pieces worth Rs 1,13,041 and Bansal 442 saris worth Rs 2,78,220. In all, 1,470 saris worth Rs 11,65,061 were supplied to the three traders. When Singhal asked them for payment, the traders sent cheques from Mumbai. However, all the cheques returned and so when he called them up repeatedly for payments, one of the traders Jayantibhai tried to scare him and said that his wife works with CBI in Kota office. Traders also threatened to kill Singhal. Salabatpura police have registered cases for cheating, breach of trust and criminal conspiracy against the Mumbai three traders.
Source: Times of India
KARACHI: We often hear that Pakistan’s textile exports are not growing and that the country is lagging behind especially compared to Bangladesh. But why is it that the industry that receives so many incentives from the government is barely able to sustain itself? Considering that the textile industry contributes about 60% to the country’s total exports, successive governments have tried their best to support it so that overall exports could be increased. Like previous governments, this government has also doled out different packages to the industry, but the situation has remained the same over the past four years. In fact, instead of increasing, Pakistan’s exports have declined by 20% in the tenure of the current government. Some of the major problems faced by the textile sector are similar to the other industries like security concerns and energy shortages. But there are some issues that are textile-specific. Textile bodies put off black day protest plan Factory owners have squarely placed the blame on government policies, security conditions and high cost of doing business. However, analysts and industry experts do not completely agree with them. Why does Pakistan lag so much behind Bangladesh? Analysts typically point to Bangladesh’s least developed country (LDC) status as the main force that made it a powerhouse of finished garment exports. The country is now the second biggest garment exporter in the world, just behind China.
Invest and Finance Securities CEO Muzammil Aslam also believes that one of the major reasons why Bangladesh has moved ahead of Pakistan is due to its advantage as an LDC. According to the United Nations, there are 48 LDCs that have the lowest socio-economic indicators in the world. These countries get tax exemptions in developed markets like the European Union (EU) and the United States (US), which help them increase their exports. Since Pakistan is not in this list, it does not enjoy the import duty benefits like Bangladesh. One of the biggest problems for Pakistan is that its annual cotton production has dropped considerably from about 15 million bales to just 10 million bales. As a result, the country imports cotton and this increases the cost of production, said Aslam. Pakistan is the fourth largest cotton producer in the world after China, India and the US. Despite having this advantage, Pakistan has been unable to compete with Bangladesh, a country that imports almost 95% of cotton. Is devaluation the only way to increase exports? Textile industry’s revival: Bailout package worth Rs175 billion prepared Leading textile exporters say Pakistan has been left behind in the region because of a stronger rupee against the dollar. However, if we look closely at how exchange rates of Pakistan rupee and Bangladesh taka have moved against the dollar in the last five years, this claim looks very weak. From mid-2011 to mid-2016, the rupee depreciated from 85.9 to 104.6, down 21% against the dollar. In the same period, Bangladesh taka depreciated by just 5.2% from 74.4 to 78.3 against the dollar. Going by this logic, Pakistan’s textile exports must have increased much faster because its currency depreciated more than four times compared to Bangladesh taka. But the reality is completely opposite. The rupee lost considerable ground against the dollar from 2012 to 2013 when it moved from 90 to 108. But it then strengthened to 98 and swung in the range of 98-105 during 2014 and 2015. The rupee finally stabilised in the range of 104-105 at the start of 2016 and it still remains the same for over one year. Analysts say currency depreciation is just one of the ways through which a country can temporarily support its exports, but this is not a long-term solution.
Opportunity lost
Today, China, the world’s largest apparel exporter, is facing problems due to rising labour wages. The rise in labour wages to over $1 per hour meant apparel manufacturing, a $80 billion industry in China, could no longer be done cost effectively, said Saquib Saeed, an entrepreneur who has worked in Bangladesh’s garment industry. This challenge had to be taken over by Bangladesh, Pakistan and Vietnam where wages are less than one-third or about $0.3 per hour. After China, only these three have the economies of scale and the idle labour capacity, he added. Pakistan should have taken at least one-third to half of this $80 billion apparel share. But instead, it largely went to Bangladesh and Vietnam. “Sadly, both weren’t even cotton producers like Pakistan. Nor did they have large-scale upstream industry such as ginning, spinning, weaving and fabric processing, like we do,” said Saeed. Textile industry: PTEA blames govt for falling exports. However, there are some who believe that despite all the shortcomings, the government should continue to support the textile industry. “Due to the importance of the textile industry, the government needs to provide support to this sector,” said JS Global Limited analyst Ahmed Lakhani. He believes that concerns that the over-valued rupee is hurting textile exports are quite valid, especially when regional countries have supported their exports through currency devaluation. “Over-valued rupee is a genuine problem that is pulling back the textile industry’s growth,” he added.
Source: The Express Tribune
Vietnam in the first two months of this year (2017) has seen an increasing foreign direct investment (FDI) from China, according to the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment. Specifically, in January-February period, Chinese investors have registered to implement 123 projects and 174 times of share purchase. Some typical projects by Chinese investors during the period include Billion Vietnam polyester synthetic fiber plant (with investment of 220 million US dollars) in central Tay Ninh province. According to local economist Le Xuan Nghia, in the coming time, a trend of transferring Chinese capital into Southeast Asian countries including Vietnam will be seen. In other Southeast Asian nations such as the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand, Chinese investors also pour money in giant projects, said Nghia. A total of 721.7 million US dollars of Chinese FDI was recorded in Vietnam in two-month period, up 152.78 percent year-on-year, accounting for 21 percent of the country's total FDI, said FIA, adding that China has become the second largest FDI contributor to Vietnam, after Singapore.
Source: Yarns and fibres
To meet demand from the market, Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) has plans to set up a composite jute mill, which will produce cotton and jute blended denim fabrics. BJMC which operates 26 jute mills in Bangladesh expects this project to be profitable. The government owned entity has all along been producing only hessian fabrics and jute sacks. "BJMC has already received approval from the project evaluation committee of the planning ministry and is awaiting final approval from the National Economic Council," Mahmudul Hassan, chairman of BJMC was quoted as saying by Bangladeshi media reports. BJMC also expects to expand its product portfolio, while increasing market opportunities for jute through this project. (AR)
Source: Fibre2Fashion
We hear about conflict palm oil and conflict minerals often, but what about conflict cotton? The world’s most popular textile fiber has been linked to slavery in Uzbekistan and thousands of farmers committing suicide in India. Indeed, programs such as the Better Cotton Initiative and Cotton Connect are doing remarkable work to alleviate cotton’s impact on human rights and the environment. And to their credit, more apparel companies — from Adidas to C&A — are incorporating more sustainable sources of cotton into their clothing lines. One company, however, wants to go even further in guaranteeing that its cotton comes from a reliable and responsible source. PimaCott, owned by a large Indian supplier, says it has a solution. The company partnered with Applied DNA Sciences, an American biotechnology firm, to treat its cotton so that it can be easily scanned and identified. Molecules with DNA tags are added to cotton during the ginning process, so someone on a company’s supply chain team is able to track the authenticity of the cotton from the field to the store. Applied DNA Sciences says its technology also allows for “fiber typing.” This allows supply chain stakeholders to authenticate a bolt of textiles or a garment as a genuine varietal of cotton – which, in PimaCott’s case, is pima: the high-end cotton grown in California’s San Joaquin Valley. (Hence the company’s name.) From a business perspective, this is critical for the Central Valley’s pima cotton farmers, who are subjected to far stricter environmental and labor standards in the Golden State than other countries, or even other U.S. states.
The problem is that consumers who seek textiles made from coveted Californian or Egyptian cotton can be misled by wayward suppliers. Last fall, Walmart and Target were nailed by lawsuits alleging the retailers mislead consumers about a line of “100 percent” Egyptian cotton sheets, made in India. Walmart in turn offered customer refunds, but the episode raised questions about the authenticity of high-quality products in other stores. And of course, conscious consumers were left wondering if that ethical set of sheets or shirt had fibers that traveled from cotton suppliers with dubious labor or environmental practices. Other controversies, such as the tensions between Monsanto and India that eventually prodded the biotech firm to pull its latest GMO cotton seeds out of the Indian market last summer, raised further questions about the veracity of any company’s claims about their products. This technology shows promise, and could eventually help other organizations that are trying to scale fair trade or responsibly-sourced cotton. But it will take a while for DNA tagging to score widespread acceptance.
As Fast Company reported, these tagged molecules need to be added to cotton at its point of origin. From the point of view of farmers, many of whom face thin margins and other risks such as bad weather or global slumps in commodity prices, DNA tagging could come across as yet another expense. But PimaCott says it is helping cotton growers with the upfront costs. And if farmers see the value in having their crops verified and prevented from becoming blended with lower-grade cotton, we could see an industry transformed — and down the road, witness improved traceability in other agricultural supply chains as well.
Source: Triple Pundit
Mexico City - The latest computerized cutting machine from Shima Seiki will be on display later this month when the company participates in the Expo Producción textile and machinery show to be held in Mexico City. Alongside its Mexican representative MACOCA, Shima Seiki will exhibit its P-CAM182 multi-ply computerized cutting machine (NC cutting machine). Described as fast and efficient with high productivity, P-CAM’s multi-ply cutting capability allows up to 2 inches (55mm) of fabric or material to be cut, while the turbo fan option suppresses fluctuation in air pressure for stable multi-ply cutting. A knife sharpening system has been designed to produce a sharp, strong blade every time while strong, robust components permit quicker response times for knife movement and more accurate cutting for thick fabrics such as denim. P-CAM machines are said to be ideally suited to global production in a wide range of industrial applications in addition to apparel and textiles. Also demonstrated at Expo Producción will be Shima Seiki’s SDS-ONE APEX3 computer design system. With full-featured PGM software, APEX3 provides smooth and efficient workflow from patternmaking, grading and marking to cutting. Highly efficient “AutoMarking Premium” nesting software, as well as barcode generation are available for efficient marker generation and pick-up. APEX3 is also capable of photo-realistic product simulation for creating Virtual Samples. Virtual Sampling minimizes the need for actual sample-making, reducing time, material and cost while increasing presentation quality in the sampling process. APEX3 supports design and simulation in a variety of textile industries including flat knitting, circular knitting, weaving, pile weaving and printing, as well as industrial design. Expo Producción takes place from 29 - 31 March at the World Trade Centre, Mexico City.
Source: Knitting Trade Journal
LONDON- Several textile industries have shown promising growth in the last year. As conditions become more favorable, they will continue to prosper in the global market. Details on these three industries and more can be found on BizVibe. BizVibe is the world’s smartest B2B marketplace and allows users to discover high quality leads, contact prospects, and source quotes. Register today to connect with over seven million companies around the globe.
Global Smart Textiles Market Thrives
Smart textiles might be a new segment in the global textile and apparel industry, but its staggering growth rate over the last few years has proven its potential to be one of the biggest sectors in the global textile market. This growth is mainly driven by the uptrend in the wearable technology industry, increasing demand for sophisticated electronics, miniaturization of electronic components, and the rapid growth of wireless sensor networks.While the textiles cost more than other types of fabrics, their versatility and the increasing accessibility of new technology mean that these products are here to stay.
Organic Cotton Market Grows as Consumers Demand Sustainability With growing concerns over sustainability and pollution globally, more organizations are beginning to turn to organic cotton when manufacturing textiles. Conventional cotton accounts for around 11% of global pesticide sales despite using less than 3% of cultivated land, and many of these pesticides are harmful to people. While organic cotton is more costly, it has a much smaller environmental impact. The global organic cotton market was worth USD 15.76 billion in 2014/15 and shows stable growth, according to Textile Exchange. While cotton prices had been declining for several years, they began to pick up again in 2016, when consumption exceed production for the first time in 6 years. As more people are beginning to factor in sustainability when buying clothing and other products, using organic cotton can give companies an edge over their competitors. With cotton demand and prices on the rise once more, the future is looking bright for this market. Global Polyester Market Continues Its Stable Growth Polyester is now one of the most commonly used fibres in the global textile and apparel industry, accounting for more than half of the overall fibre used worldwide. The share of polyester fibres used in the global mills industry is estimated to reach over 57.4% by 2020, meaning that the usage of polyester will be significantly more than the usage of cotton, cellulosic, wool and acrylic combined. Today, polyester is already the most widely used fibre in all major segments of the global textile and apparel market. A report by Zion Research indicates that the global market is expected to surpass USD 115 billion by 2020, representing a CAGR of over 5% over the five-year period. While growth is projected to slow down in the near future, polyester will continue to be a dominant fiber. BizVibe is home to 150,000+ apparel and textile companies across 200+ countries, covering all sectors. The BizVibe platform allows you to discover the highest quality leads and make meaningful connections in real time. Claim your company profile for free and let the business come to you.
About BizVibe
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Source: Yahoo Finance
Colour and function: digital textile printing is one of the focal-point themes at this year's Texprocess. For the first time, theWorld Textile Information Network (WTiN) is holding the European Digital Textile Conference at Texprocess. And there will be a separate lecture block on digital printing in the program of the Texprocess Forum. Moreover, the Digital Textile Microfactory in Hall 6.0 will present a textile production chain in action – from design, via digital printing and cutting, to making up. As well, numerous exhibitors, including Brother, Epson, Ergosoft and Mimaki, will be showing digital printing technologies. "We are expanding our program on the subject of digital printing in response to the growing demand for digitalized technologies for processing garments, technical textiles and flexible materials. This programme is of particular interest to manufacturers of technical textiles and companies that process textiles," says Michael Jänecke, head of brand management, Textiles and Textile Technologies, Messe Frankfurt. "Thanks to digital textile printing, it is now possible to print apparel, shoes and technical textiles directly," said Elgar Straub, managing director, VDMA Textile Care, Fabric and Leather Technologies. "Given the general trend towards individualisation, demand for individualised products is increasing in the apparel industry. This is turning digital textile printing into one of the future-oriented technologies for companies that process garments and textiles." In cooperation with Texprocess and Techtextil, the WTiN will hold the European Digital Textile Conference at Texprocess for the first time. The focus of the conference will be on digital textile printing for adding functional and decorative features to technical textiles. The WTiN European Digital Textile Conference will take place in Saal Europa of Hall 4.0 from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on May 10. Tickets for the conference can be obtained from WTiN European Digital Textile Conference at Texprocess The subjects to be covered in the lectures include direct yarn coloring in the embroidery plants (Coloreel, Sweden), plasma pre-treatment for textiles before digital printing (GRINP, Italy) and chemical finishing for textiles using inkjet printing technology (EFI-REGGIANI, USA). Digital printing technology will also be the subject of a separate lecture block at Texprocess Forum. At this international conference, experts from science and industry will focus on the latest findings relating to subjects of major importance to the sector in over 30 lectures and panel discussions on all four days of the fair. Texprocess Forum is free of charge for visitors of Texprocess and Techtextil and will be held in Hall 6.0. For the first time, three partner organisations are organising the lecture blocks: DTB – Dialogue Textile Apparel, the International Apparel Federation (IAF) and the World Textile Information Network (WTiN). Texprocess Forum to spotlight digital printing technology. In cooperation with the German Institutes of Textile and Fibre Research Denkendorf (DITF) and renowned textile companies, Texprocess presents the complete interlinked textile production chain – the Digital Textile Microfactory – live in Hall 6.0. The digital-printing station shows large-scale inkjet printing in the form of sublimation printing on polyester and pigment printing on cotton and blended fabrics. Production orders can be combined flexibly and printed color consistently with a variety of printing parameters. Ensuring optimum printing results at this station are hardware and software partners Mimaki and Ergosoft and Coldenhove and Monti Antonio.
Digital Textile Microfactory
In addition to the Microfactory partners, other renowned companies, including Brother and Epson, will be showing state-of-the-art printing processes for textiles and apparel at Texprocess. Originally developed for fashion fabrics, digital textile printing is also used for printing technical textiles, such as sports clothing, and textiles for the automobile industry whereby the primary focus is on functionalizing textiles. For example, swimwear can be made more colorfast to resist frequent contact with water and chlorine, and exposure to the sun. Also, textiles can be finished by applying chemicals via an inkjet printer and thus be given dirt-repellent, antimicrobial and fire-retardant properties. Additionally, using an inkjet printer in the finishing process is advantageous in terms of sustainability and efficiency.
Digital-printing outlook
Texprocess is being held concurrently with Techtextil, International Trade Fair for Technical Textiles and Nonwovens, for the fourth time (also from May 9 to 12 2017). Altogether, 1,662 exhibitors from 45 countries and 42,000 trade visitors came to Frankfurt am Main for the 2015 editions of Texprocess and Techtextil. More than 13,300 trade visitors attended specifically for Texprocess. They were supplemented by another 7,600 from the concurrent Techtextil.
Source: Apparel Magazine
HCM CITY — The Vietnam Saigon Textile and Garment Industry/Fabric and Garment Accessories Expo (Saigon Tex 2017) that will showcase high-end machinery and equipment and feedstock for the textile and garment industry will be held in HCM City next month. The 35,000sq.m expo is expected to attract nearly 1,200 exhibitors from 23 countries and territories. It will also feature several seminars, including those on increasing value for Vietnamese textile and garment products, challenges and investment opportunities in the textile and footwear sector, trade barriers from the free trade agreement between the EU and Việt Nam, as well as today’s global apparel and fashion market. To be held at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre from April 5 to 8, Saigon Tex will offer garment companies a gilt-edged chance to foster relations with foreign enterprises and seek investment opportunities while enhancing technology transfer to increase local content in garment products and improving product quality to meet the needs of local and international buyers. This will enhance the value of Vietnamese garment and textile products, contributing to the development of the industry amid the country’s international integration. The expo, jointly organised by the Việt Nam National Textile and Garment Group, VCCI Exhibition Service Co., Ltd, CP Hongkong Exhibition Organisation Co., Ltd and CP Vietnam Exhibition Organisation Co., Ltd, is an annual event that meets the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry standards. — VNS
Source: Viet Nam News
More than 3,341 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions participated in the Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabric trade fair that was recently held in China. This edition recorded a 5.9 per cent increase in exhibitors from last year (3,155 from 27 countries and regions) and played host to over 71,000 visitors from 103 countries and regions. The three-day fair successfully generated steady business for the participants and helped them network with companies from around the globe. Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Spring Edition 2017 was co-organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT, and the China Textile Information Centre. Yarn Expo, CHIC and PH Value fairs were also held concurrently with Intertextile in Shanghai. "This fair is one of the most important events for the worldwide textile market, and the strong business results for exhibitors and buyers this edition once again validates this. The amount of new business that was generated here this week, as expressed by many exhibitors, was the most pleasing aspect for us," said Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd. "This is due in part, we believe, to our efforts over the last few editions to improve the quality of buyers sourcing at the fair, as well as a strong focus on our product zones, which target the growth areas of the market. We have also continued our work with the venue to ensure service standards continue to improve, which has provided a more conducive environment all-round for business to take place," added Wen. Amongst the many exhibitors reporting strong results were two world-renowned brands who were returning to the fair. Even with their long participation at Intertextile Shanghai, they still managed to meet new, quality buyers this edition. "Although we are always exhibiting here, we still see new people at the fair and can always find potential customers. Many of the companies in China are growing in size as well as quality, so they are interested in our products. Around 70 per cent of people to our booth have been new and interested customers, so Intertextile Shanghai is the show to be at and is an absolute must! We are telling everyone if you want to be serious in this business then you have to be here," said Eberhard Ganns, managing director of German company Union Knopf (HK) Ltd. Hyundai Chemical from Korea has been participating in the Spring and Autumn Editions of the fair for four years, with Youn Seok Jang, Overseas Sales Team Manager, explaining their reason for returning is Intertextile Shanghai's ability to attract the right buyers. "In the past two days of the fair, we have obtained over 50 business contacts from both new and existing clients. A large number of the contacts were domestic Chinese buyers, while buyers from the Americas and Europe also showed genuine interest in our latest products. The fair keeps getting better year after year, and we are able to connect with enough new buyers every edition to make it worthwhile for us to come back repeatedly." Returning American buyer Steven Fuller, director men's woven's, Tommy Bahama, was at the fair to source unique and innovative fabrics. "I have been to many of the previous editions and I can confidently say that this is one of the most comprehensive sourcing platforms for our company to gain business contacts. There is no place in the region that has this many suppliers to choose from. I met with companies who develop their own fabrics, and have also had the chance to speak with the product developers, which is helpful in explaining the nature of their product." "This edition we connected with over 20 suppliers, while having already placed orders with four of them, including from China, Korea and Taiwan. Overall, I am very pleased with the fair and like every year, it is able to fulfil our sourcing needs. We will most definitely be back again this October," added Fuller. The next edition, Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Autumn Edition 2017, will take place from October 11-13, 2017.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
