#Raw Materials

2023-05-25

Bangladesh lifts fumigation requirements on U.S. Cotton following CCI-sponsored U.S. Cotton Tour

A Cotton Council International (CCI)-sponsored Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture Delegation’s U.S. visit from Oct. 30-Nov. 5, 2022, coupled with indispensable efforts by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) office in Dhaka,ultimately convinced the Bangladesh government to relax its nearly-five-decade-long fumigation requirement on U.S. cotton imports.

This shift will remove a significant export barrier for U.S. cotton to Bangladesh, as well as saving Bangladeshi mills time and money as they look to the U.S. to fill their cotton fiber import needs. Bangladeshi mills have been paying over a million dollars annually to cover unnecessary fumigation costs imposed on cotton imported from the U.S.

U.S. exporters will continue to use APHIS-generated phytosanitary certificates, but under the new regulation the certificate will have additional language confirming no live boll weevils are in U.S. baled cotton. APHIS will issue revised instructions for exporters.

Bangladesh’s Agricultural and Commerce Ministries’ decision to lift the fumigation requirements on U.S. cotton came after six Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture delegation members joined a CCI-sponsored U.S. cotton tour. Thanks to coordination with the National Cotton Council (NCC), the Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture delegation conducted U.S. cotton meetings in Tennessee, Mississippi and Texas. They met with U.S. cotton industry representatives and visited cotton fields, gins and warehouses, and the USDA Agricultural Ginning Research Laboratory in Stoneville, Miss.

The delegation learned why U.S. cotton bales do not harbor live boll weevils, including a review of the U.S. cotton industry’s successful Boll Weevil Eradication Program and its modern cotton harvesting and standardized ginning techniques. Additional discussion topics included the phytosanitary inspection and certification process with APHIS during Zoom calls at the NCC headquarters in Cordova, Tenn., and during a meeting with the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Program in Harlingen, Texas.

In Mississippi, the Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture delegation members met with Staplcotn—a U.S. cooperative and leading exporter of U.S. cotton to Bangladesh—and toured a gin and warehouse. U.S. cotton grower Sledge Taylor gave the group a tour of his family’s cotton farm and gin operations, as well as an overview of the sustainable cotton production practices U.S. cotton growers follow.

Bangladesh presently ranks as the No. 2 global importer of cotton, according to the USDA FAS’s global market analysis in May 2023. Although there is some domestic cotton produced in Bangladesh, it accounts for 1% or less of total demand.

Bangladesh was a Top 10 export market for U.S. cotton in 2022, with exports valued at $477.07 million.

https://www.fas.usda.gov/regions/bangladesh

“Production is a product”

From technical textiles and AI-driven robotics to the limitations of textile circularity: Professor Dr Thomas Gries looks back on more than two decades of development at ITA Aachen. In the interview, he explains why production technology remains a decisive success factor, discusses international collaborations and innovation ecosystems, and shares his views on the transformation of production landscapes and the challenges facing an increasingly regulated industry.

“We need to move away from the price trap and return to a value-driven mindset.”

With its new Textile Innovation Center, KARL MAYER is sending a strong signal for innovation, collaboration, and the future of textile applications. In this interview, Karl Josef Mayer discusses new opportunities in warp knitting, the processing of staple fibres, recycling, the changing role of machinery manufacturers, and why the textile industry must once again focus more strongly on the value of textiles. by Oliver Schmidt

“Innovation, resilience and international experience remain the great strengths of the Swiss textile machinery industry”

Geopolitical uncertainty, growing competitive pressure from China, new free trade agreements and the shift towards a circular economy are currently reshaping the global textile industry. In this interview, Cornelia Buchwalder discusses the current mood within the Swiss textile machinery sector, the industry’s distinctive innovative strength, new market opportunities in India and Asia, and the technological trends that could shape the upcoming trade fair cycle leading up to ITMA 2027.

Dr N Vigneshwaran is named 2026 ICAC Researcher of the Year

The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) is pleased to announce the selection of Dr N Vigneshwaran, Principal Scientist and Head of the Chemical and Biochemical Processing Division at the ICAR–Central Institute for Research on Cotton Technology (ICAR-CIRCOT), Mumbai, India, as the ICAC Researcher of the Year 2026.

New U.S. cotton study uses real-world grower data to reveal where fiber impacts occur

Cotton Incorporated has released a critically reviewed life cycle assessment (LCA) of U.S. cotton fiber production that examines how cotton’s environmental impacts are measured and where meaningful improvements can be made across the value chain. The new data, grounded in real‑world grower inputs, measures what drives U.S. cotton’s environmental footprint from field to gin.

ATCO Hygienics, Uzbekistan, orders baby diaper production line from ANDRITZ

International technology group ANDRITZ has received an order from ATCO Hygienics to supply a new baby diaper production line for its plant in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The order is included in ANDRITZ’s order intake for the first quarter of 2026. Commissioning of the production line is scheduled for the end of 2026.

Nico Pedretti appointed as Managing Director Graf Group

As of June 1, 2026, Nico Pedretti has assumed the role of Managing Director Graf Group. With more than 20 years of international industrial experience and extensive expertise in Operations, Supply Chain Management, Finance and Controlling, he brings a broad range of leadership and business experience to support Graf’s continued success.