FW
Zambia has had a significant increase in cotton production in the 2014-15 agricultural season. Seed cotton production rose from 95,000 metric tons in the 2013-14 farming season to 1,15,000 metric tons in the 2014-15 season.
The increase in cotton production is attributed to continued private sector-led input and market service delivery by ginning companies. Ginning companies spent in excess of $16 million in input provision to cotton farmers and were able to recover an average of 80 per cent input loans at marketing from the farmers.
The improved rate of input loan recovery from an average of 65 per cent in the previous season to 80 per cent was due to both adherence to the code of conduct that the ginners had signed prior to commencement of the 2014-15 marketing season and the strict monitoring and implementation of the cotton act by the cotton board of Zambia.
Farmers sold cotton only to ginners that pre-financed them with inputs. Apart from promoting cotton production, most ginning companies have extended their production and marketing support to maize and soya beans in an effort to improve not only cash earning crops among small-holder farmers, but also to enhance food security.
Spanish company Jeanologia’s has set up a jeans finishing plant that guarantees zero contamination. This plant is a first in the industry. Jeanologia is a global participant in sustainable and efficient technologies for the textile finishing industry.
Laser, G2, and eFlow technologies combine to allow the company to reduce water consumption by 90 per cent, the use of chemicals by 90 per cent and energy consumption by 50 per cent. The facility will recycle 100 per cent of the water used, eliminating waste and also the use of pumice stone.
The company sells its products in 45 countries and counts many major retail brands among its customers. Denim jeans washing is one of the most environment polluting activity in the apparel industry. There is a feeling that by 2020, 80 per cent of global denim production will be generated by zero discharge centers. Automation, sustainability and the intelligent recycling of water will help make the textile industry a model of transparency, innovation, and sustainable practices.
Jeanologia is dedicated to providing eco friendly finishing solutions for garments – especially denim. Its mission has been to enhance industrial garment finishing through technology and knowhow. The G2 waterless washing machine washes denim jeans with about 60 per cent less water and almost no chemicals.
www.jeanologia.com/
Ethiopia is set to generate $2.3 billion revenue from the export of textile products in GTP II period. Raising competitiveness of textile companies through capacity utilisation, encouraging local and foreign investments, and expansion of industrial parks, would draw this ambitious amount of revenue, believes the country’s government.
In the GTP I period, the textile sector of Ethiopia has $455 million and still, the plan was to acquire $1 million. For this period, 60 percent was contributed by Ayka Addis Textile and Investment Group. In this period, it registered $272.2 million export revenue.
Bahir Dar Textile S C, Bay Kebire Enterprise, Kombolcha Textile S.C., MNS Manufacturing PLC, Adama Spinning Factory, Selendawa Textile S.C., and Elsie Addis Industrial Development PLC had contributed 20 percent share to the export in GTP I.
Ethiopia’s central location, an abundance of inexpensive labour, access to state-of-the-art container port, it’s quality and productivity, good climate and soil conditions, cheap hydro-energy, duty-free access to the European Union (EU) and US markets through the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), and more than 65 textile investment projects from international investors, among other factors are very strong reasons for Ethiopia to have good export of its textile products.
The Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh has decided to part business relations with Sadaf Fashions, a Chittagong-based manufacturer of readymade garment since it has refused to implement workplace safety measures.
Earlier, Accord had stopped business relations with two other factories - Mega Chois Knitwear and Florence Fashions since they too had refused to adhere to the process of temporarily evacuation of factories. On November 4, 2015, the retailer’s platform in a statement said despite numerous efforts by the Accord staff and its signatories, the factory owner continued to refuse to cooperate in the resolution of health and safety issues at the factory. The owner also refused to comply with an order to evacuate the factory until all structural defects are assessed and repaired, it added.
On April 19, 2015 last year, the platform for EU retailers inspected Sadaf Fashions and found a series of defects which prompted the organisation to convene a review panel that imposed on the factory a set of immediate corrective actions. An Accord follow-up inspection found that the requirements to reduce load, remove a wall, empty an area of all load and dismantle a cantilever slab were not followed. Also requirement to carry out a Detailed Engineering Assessment (DEA) as well as requirements related to fire exit and other fire safety measures were not met.
Bangladeshaccord.org
Taipei In Style (TIS) will commence at the cultural park in downtown Taipei from November 12, 2015 showcasing latest fashion from Taiwan and international destinations. The four-day event to run till November 15, 2015 at Songshan Cultural and Creative Park will feature products belonging to various categories such as apparel, lifestyle and fashion.
During a press event organised on November 6, 2014 to promote the upcoming show, model Silvia Wang flaunted 14 sets of clothing in succession designed by Taiwanese designers and their foreign counterparts, on the runway. The four-day show will have 197 booths of 150 fashion design companies around the globe. A total of 15 fashion shows will also be staged during the span of the show.
Five seminars by experts from France and the Netherlands, will also be held where Taiwanese experts and their foreign counterparts will be able to exchange views on the fashion industry-related issues. First held in 2006, the TIS is sponsored by the Bureau of Foreign Trade under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and is organised by the Taiwan Textile Federation. Over the years, TIS has successfully paved the way for numerous Taiwanese and foreign designers, brands and companies on the international stage. Since 2014, the show has been staged twice a year, once in spring and another in fall.
www.taipeiinstyle.com
Bangladesh’s Dacca Dyeing Garments a concern of Palmal Group, has shut down for an indefinite period amidst workers’ demonstration. They had terminated 152 workers recently. A notification on closure was posted on the gates of the factories signed by a director of the factory. The notification said that the factories were shut with effect from November 7, 2015 under Section 13(1) of the Bangladesh Labour Act.
In the event of an illegal strike by any section or department of any establishment, the section empowers an employer to shut down either wholly or partly such section or department. Also, the workers who participated in the illegal strike may not be paid any wages for such a shutdown.
Due to the provocation of some unruly workers, all workers of the factory started a strike in the factory to get a number of illegal demands met with, stated Mahatab Uddin, one of the directors of the company. He added that the workers did not allow resuming production despite repeated attempts and considering the situation, the authorities decided to close the factory until further announcement.
Workers had alleged that the authorities of Dacca Dyeing had terminated the said workers as they were attempting to form a trade union. The factory authorities though, denied the allegation and said that they terminated some extra work force as the factory’s export orders declined.
The workers staged a demonstration in the unit and demanded reinstatement of terminated workers and rights for forming trade union and even put forth a set of demands to the authorities and continued with the demonstration.
Dyeing units in Rajasthan which had to shut down following charges of effluent release have been allowed to reopen. However, they have to comply with certain norms. These include installation of a primary treatment plant, payment of a security deposit ranging from Rs 2 to Rs 5 lakh per unit, connecting all the dyeing units to a common effluent treatment plant, fixing of meters in the bore well and a flow meter for the water pipeline, and disposal of sledge in specified areas.
The decision to restart is expected to lead to an improvement in the yarn market. There is a sudden spurt in demand for yarn and prices have also started looking up, improving by Rs 4 to Rs 6 a kg. This will help improve capacity utilisation levels in the mill sector.
Export demand for cotton yarn has also picked up particularly from countries like China and Vietnam since July. Total cotton yarn exports between January and August this year increased by 11.89 per cent when compared to the same period of the earlier year.
The mood is upbeat. Prospects for the textile industry look good. One positive development is that the two per cent export benefit under Merchandise Export from India Scheme has been extended.
As per a Taiwan Textile Federation’s Textile Export Promotion Project (TEPP) statement major Taiwanese textile firms participating in the international textile machinery exhibition ITMA will showcase their latest developments and advantages of using their new materials at the show. Since most major Taiwanese companies are vertically integrated, this helps them achieve absolute control of the entire manufacturing process to ensure that production is sustainable across all links of the chain.
Developing green textiles by incorporating functional and aesthetic fashion innovations to eco-friendly production to improve consumers’ lives is a persistent quest for Taiwan. Besides, it contributes to safeguarding the environment. Thus, Taiwan’s textiles bank on functionality and sustainability today. This factor is firmly rooted in Taiwan’s textiles production chain, from raw materials, manufacturing, processes, technology, product or the work environment.
TEPP especially mentions innovation materials developed by seven firms, viz. Acelon, Far Eastern New Century, Formosa Chemicals & Fibre, Libolon, Yi Jinn, Zig Sheng, and Singtex. Moreover, TEPP promotes the Taiwan textile industry under the slogan 'Think Taiwan for Textiles', by attending international shows, organising trade missions and match-making meetings between brands and Taiwan producers, and bringing the advantages of Taiwanese textiles to the forefront.
According to the latest figures released by the International Labor Organization (ILO), Cambodia’s garment industry continued to perform brilliantly through the first half of 2015. The industry successfully dispelled fears that the recent minimum wage increase would cripple one of the country’s main economic engines.
Drawing on data from the Ministry of Commerce, garment exports over the first half of the year hit $3 billion, growing 12.7 percent over the same period in 2014, as per the latest industry bulletin. That’s even better than the 10.2 percent year-on-year growth the industry saw in the first half of last year. This was despite an unusually high 28 percent hike in the minimum wage for garment workers that took effect in January 2015.
Maurizio Bussi, Country Director, ILO said that there were fears in the past that minimum wage rises would cause the industry to falter. However, according to data, the sector continued to perform quite well—Cambodia’s market share of garment and footwear exports has continued to rise in recent years, he said. Although he mentioned that this positive experience from the past minimum wage increases does not ensure that future hikes will necessarily be as good for the industry.
One of the important elements of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is the 'Yarn Forward' rule, a component of the textiles and apparel section, experts say this will have specific impact on countries such as China, Vietnam and Malaysia. Under this provision, only yarn made by TPP members can be sold to the TPP markets, such as the United States and Japan.
ITA expresses views on TPP benefits
US Association of Importers of Textiles & Apparel (ITA) feels, this provision has numerous implications. One is Vietnam can provide low cost manufacturing at an equivalent current productivity ratio of about 70 per cent of that achievable in China. However, its textiles industry relies heavily on cheap Chinese yarn imports. To take advantage of the TPP agreement and sell onto the lucrative markets of Japan and the United States, it will need to change its sourcing habits across the entire textiles industry, points out ITA.
Secondly, suppliers could include the United States and Japan for high quality items, and Malaysia, Mexico and Peru for lower quality production. Obvious and significant trade routes have opened up in this area assuming Vietnamese manufacturing can be upgraded to ensure quality sustainability. This alone may drive US investors to Vietnam to assist with machinery upgrades via joint ventures and US owned factories.
ITA further says that countries like Malaysia, Mexico and Peru, may gain spin off benefits by seeing investment in their textiles industries to support trade with the US and to upgrade existing facilities. The TPP agreement also contains significant aspects concerning the upgrading of IP protection and the enforcement of this, which is a positive as far as the American fashion industry is concerned.
Affects on Chinese players
Bypassing Chinese production, the US has opened a window for trade in the form of raw yarn to be exported, finished elsewhere under more secure conditions than in China, and then re-exported back to the US. Accessing cheap, yet well organised labour is part of this opportunity; Vietnam and Mexico both offer solutions. In case of China, according to ITA, the TPP Yarn Forward provision is obviously bad news for textiles and apparel manufacturers. The Chinese yarn manufacturing industry is now effectively limited to China’s domestic market and those of the ASEAN agreement. China is also about to lose the entire Vietnamese market in addition to being effectively cut off from US trade.
On the other hand, ITA says, the Chinese industry has been in decline for a number of years, losing much of its base to Bangladesh and also to some extent, India. However, the message for foreign investors in China’s textiles and apparel markets is clear – it is now time to seriously look at investing in Vietnam as an alternative.
