Why natural? Why are natural fibers important? Who decided that 2009 would be the International Year of Natural Fibres? Who will coordinate the Year?

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1 Why natural? HUGO VAN TILBORG Why are natural fibers important? Some 30 million tonnes of natural fibers are produced annually. Natural fibers form an important component of clothing, upholstery and other textiles. Many of them also have industrial applications in packaging, papermaking and in composite materials with many uses, including as parts in automobiles. In many developing countries, proceeds from the sale and export of natural fibers contribute significantly to the income and the food security of poor farmers and those working in fiber processing and marketing. For some developing countries, natural fibers are of major economic importance: for example, cotton in some West African countries, jute in Bangladesh and sisal in Tanzania. In other cases, fibers are of less significance at the national level but are of major local importance, as in the case of jute in West Bengal (India) and sisal in north-east Brazil. Why an International Year? Since the 1960s, the use of synthetic fibers has increased, and natural fibers have lost a lot of their market share. Producers and processors of natural fibers face the challenge of developing and maintaining markets in which they can compete effectively with synthetics. In some cases, this has involved defining and promoting market niches. In others, where their natural advantages allow them to compete effectively with synthetics, basic research and development is needed to facilitate the use of natural fibers in new applications. The main goal of the International Year of Natural Fibres is to raise the profile of these fibers and to emphasise their value to consumers while helping to sustain the incomes of the farmers. In addition, the International Year will promote the efficiency and sustainability of the natural fiber production, encourage appropriate policy responses from governments to the problems faced by natural fiber industries, and foster an effective and enduring international partnership among the various natural fiber industries. Who decided that 2009 would be the International Year of Natural Fibres? The idea came from fiber producing and consuming countries at a meeting of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). At the request of FAO, the declaration of 2009 as International Year of Natural Fibres was made by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 20 December Who will coordinate the Year? There is a coordinating unit in FAO, but a great many other organizations and people will be involved. An International Steering Committee, with representatives from various fiber organisations, consumer bodies, and funding agencies, will meet from time to time to guide the programme. Most of the activities will be organized by IYNF partners, some at the international level, and many more within individual countries.

2 Abaca Once a favoured source of rope for ship s rigging, abaca shows promise as a replacement for glass fibers in automobiles Harvesting abaca is very labor-intensive. Each stalk must be cut into strips which are then scraped (usually by hand) to remove the pulp. The long white fibers are then washed and dried, and baled for transport. For use in composites for the automobile industry, high quality fiber is spun into yarn, put onto bobbins and exported. AGAP-BULUSAN Also known as Manila hemp, abaca is extracted from the leaf sheath around the trunk of the abaca plant (Musa textilis), a close relative of the banana and native to the Philippines. One traditional use of the coarse abaca fibers, which range up to 3 metres in length and have very high tensile strength, was as cordage, especially for ship s rigging. Today, most abaca is pulped and processed into tea bags, casing for sausages, banknotes, cigarette papers and high-quality writing paper. Recently, research engineers patented a novel mixture of polypropylene thermoplastic and abaca yarn for use in automobile components, including external panels. In 2007, the Philippines produced tonnes of abaca fiber, while Ecuador produced tonnes. World production is valued at around $30 million a year. Almost all abaca produced is exported from the producing countries. Exports from the Philippines are increasingly in the form of pulp rather than raw fiber. Almost 90% of the world s abaca is produced in and exported from the Philippines, with Ecuador accounting for the rest. What are the prospects for abaca? In the Philippines, labor-intensive harvesting practices limit profitability, but small-scale production offers limited scope for mechanization. Attempts have been made recently to develop appropriate equipment, including hand tools, to increase production efficiency. Processing machinery is more applicable to the larger-scale production of Ecuador. In the Philippines, abaca is planted over an area estimated at ha. It is also cultivated in other South-east Asian countries, and has been successfully introduced into Ecuador, now the world s No. 2 producer of the fiber. In the Philippines, abaca is mainly a small farmer s crop. In Ecuador, it is grown on large estates, although there is also a substantial smallholder co-operative movement of abaca growers.

3 Coir A coarse, short fiber extracted from the outer shell of coconuts, coir is found in ropes, mattresses, brushes, geotextiles and automobile seats The fiber can be extracted from either green coconut husks or mature brown coconut husks. After the husks have been softened or retted by soaking in water, the fibers are extracted by hand or by mechanical means, and then cleaned by sieving. Generally, green husks yield white coir fiber, which is suitable for use in carpets. Mature brown husks produce brown coir used in products such as geotextiles, mattresses, automobile seats and a wide range of brushes, twines and yarns. SANKARSHAN Coir is a lignocellulosic fiber extracted from the husk of the coconut. It is classified as a hard fiber among vegetable fibers, it has one of the highest concentrations of lignin, a natural polymer. Stronger but less flexible than cotton, coir is used mainly in furniture padding and as filling for mattresses, and in brushes, ropes and twines. But coir s resilience and bio-degradability have also found application in geotextiles, insulation material, and caulking material for boats. Rubberized coir sheets are used in automobile seats and panels. Although coconut trees grow in coastal areas across the tropics, the proportion of the world s available coconut husks that are processed into coir is small. The coir industry is fully developed only in India and Sri Lanka and economically important in a few other countries, notably Philippines, Indonesia, Viet Nam and Brazil. Coconuts are typically grown by a large number of small-scale farmers, who take husks to local mills for fiber extraction. Coir production provides work and income to thousands of rural families in the major producing countries. Globally, around tonnes of coir are produced every year, mainly in India and Sri Lanka. The value of coir production has been put at around $100 million annually. India and Sri Lanka are the main exporters of coir, followed by Thailand, Viet Nam, the Philippines and Indonesia. Around half of the coir produced is exported from the producing countries in the form of raw fiber. Smaller quantities are exported as yarn, and as mats and matting. Coir dust, a residue of milling, is gaining economic importance as a horticultural medium. What are the prospects for coir? Strong competition from synthetic materials is eroding the demand for coir in low-cost products. However, as a renewable, natural material, coir has the potential for uptake in profitable applications, provided producers meet technical standards and ensure reliable supply and price competitiveness.

4 Cotton Almost pure cellulose, cotton is the world s most widely used natural fiber and still the undisputed king of the textiles industry Essentially, cotton fiber is the fruit that grows around the seeds of the cotton plant. Most cotton in developing countries is hand picked, while in developed countries large harvesting machines are used. The cotton fibers, still attached to the seed, are taken to a ginnery (a plant equipped with rolling or sawing devices) which separates them from the seed and other debris. The cotton is then compressed into bales and wrapped for shipping. AFP/I. SANOGO Cotton grows on the seed of plants of Gossypium species native to tropical regions of Africa, the Americas and Asia. It is almost pure natural cellulose, with softness, breathability and strength that have made it the world s most popular natural fiber, used in all types of clothing and household textiles. The use of cotton was mastered thousands of years ago fragments of cotton articles dating back to BC have been found in Mexico. Cotton spinning and weaving machines invented during the 18th century made textiles Britain s No. 1 export and became a driving force of Europe s industrial revolution. Production subsequently spread around the world, and cotton processing played an important part in the industrialization of many countries. The world produces around 25 million tonnes of cotton every year, a volume four times greater than that of all other natural fibers combined. China, the United States, India, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Brazil are the main producers. Much of the cotton produced is exported to processing countries for manufacture and subsequent re-export, in some cases being sold back to the country that grew it. What are the prospects for cotton? In recent decades, cotton has maintained its market share despite tough competition from synthetic substitutes such as polyester. Improvements in production and processing technologies have helped contain costs and enhance cotton s appeal to consumers. Its position in the market for a broad range of apparel and household textiles appears secure, but its future may depend on further technological progress, including better management of diseases and pests of the cotton plant. Cultivated in around 80 countries, cotton is one of the world s most widely grown agricultural crops. For the past 50 years, cotton has used about 2.5% of the world s arable land area. Production patterns vary from small-scale, labor-intensive rainfed farming in Burkina Faso to large enterprises making intensive use of irrigation and advanced technology. In developing countries, cotton is an important cash crop for millions of farmers.

5 Flax One of nature s strongest vegetable fibers, flax was also one of the first to be extracted, spun and woven into textiles Flax is harvested for fiber production about 100 days after planting. To maximize fiber length, the entire plant is uprooted or the stalks are cut very close to the root. Seeds are removed and the stalks are then retted in a pond or open field to decompose the pectin that binds the fibers together. Once the straw has been scraped away, shorter tow fibers are separated for use in coarser fabrics, while the soft long flax fibers are spun into yarns and woven or knitted into linen textiles. CELC/MASTERS OF LINEN For at least years, fibers of the flax plant (Linum usitatissimum) have been spun and woven into linen. In Europe, the use of flax fiber in cloth dates back to Neolithic times, while the ancient Egyptians wove extremely fine linen to wrap the mummies of pharaohs. Today, the fiber is used in a wide range of textile products, including clothing, bed and bath fabrics and household furnishings. Much stronger than cotton, linen is a smooth fabric with a high natural luster and is valued for its exceptional coolness in hot weather. Flax fiber is also used to make banknotes and cigarette papers, blended with polypropylene in components for automobiles, and used in mats for insulation and in geotextiles for erosion control. Flax is grown in more than 30 countries worldwide. Some countries, notably Canada, grow seed-producing varieties of the flax plant to produce linseed oil, and do not harvest fiber. The world s leading producers of fibrous flax are China, the Russian Federation, Belarus and France. The total area dedicated to flax cultivation for fiber is estimated at around ha. FAO estimates world flax production at almost one million tonnes. In 2008, farmers in the European Union harvested some tonnes of flax. The best quality flax is grown in Western Europe and the finest linen is produced in Belgium, Ireland and Italy. What are the prospects for flax? Although linen clothing still has appeal for consumers, flax faces a difficult future in its traditional applications. Increasingly the future for flax must lie in non-traditional outlets, including paper, and as reinforcing in plastic composites. In Europe, it remains dependant on agricultural subsidies.

6 Hemp Easy to grow without agrochemicals, hemp is used increasingly in agrotextiles, car panels and fiberboard, and cottonized for clothing represents hemp processing enterprises in Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and the UK. In Canada, more than 100 farmers produce industrial hemp, following its legalization in EIHA Produced by the plant Cannabis sativa L., hemp has been used for centuries to make clothing, canvas and paper. During the 20th century, however, hemp production plummeted because of competition from synthetic fibers and a prohibition on cultivation in many countries, where it was confused with marijuana. Today, however, hemp is making a comeback: one of the strongest vegetable fibers known, it is used increasingly in a variety of technical applications, from composites in automobiles to panels, agrotextiles and fiberboard used in insulation, horticulture and construction. Because hemp grows well without the need for agrochemicals, and captures large quantities of carbon, its production is environmentally friendly and carries big energy savings. Almost half the world s industrial hemp is grown in China, with most of the remainder being cultivated in Chile, France, the Democratic People s Republic of Korea and Spain. In China, a processing plant in Yunnan province produces tonnes of hemp fiber, used mainly in cotton-hemp textiles, from bast supplied by small-scale farmers. The European Industrial Hemp Association Plants grown for fiber are planted close together, in order to produce tall, slender plants with long fibers (up to 4.5 m in length), and harvested before flowering, when fiber quality declines. After harvesting, the plants are left to dry. The fiber is extracted either through retting or using thermo-mechanical separators. Decorticated fibers are softened, cut into shorter lengths, combed and smoothed, then spun into hemp yarn by wet or dry spinning processes. FAO data indicate that world production of hemp fiber grew from tonnes in 2000 to almost tonnes in Hemp currently accounts for less than 0.5% of total world production of vegetable fibers. What are the prospects for hemp? Hemp production, especially in Europe, is emerging as a profitable, sustainable enterprise for farmers, processors and companies that use the fiber in their products. In China, scientists are using de-gumming technologies to cottonize hard hemp fibers into fine, soft and workable textile fibers.

7 Jute Its golden fibers are used in sackcloth, paper and geotextiles and help sustain the livelihoods of millions of small farmers hundreds of thousands work in the jute manufacturing sector. Farmers sell jute either to dealers who visit their home, or at local markets. The fiber may change hands a number of times through merchants before reaching mills or exporters. FAO/F.BOTTS Extracted from the stem and outer skin of the plants Corchorus capsularis and C. olitorius, jute is one of nature s strongest vegetable fibers and ranks second only to cotton in terms of production quantity and range of uses. During the Industrial Revolution, jute yarn became an important source of sackcloth that largely replaced flax and hemp fibers grown in Europe. Today, sacking still makes up the bulk of manufactured jute products. But a host of innovative diversified products have also been developed floor coverings, geotextiles, paper pulp, technical textiles, chemical products, handicrafts and fashion accessories. The jute plant flourishes in humid climates with temperatures between 24 and 38 degrees Celsius, and a minimum annual rainfall of 1000 mm climatic conditions that have made Bangladesh and West Bengal in India the world s main jute producers. Myanmar and Nepal produce much smaller quantities. Jute is a small farmer s crop. In India and Bangladesh it is estimated that some 4 million farmers earn their living and support 20 million dependents from jute cultivation, while Jute cultivation is labor-intensive, but requires only small quantities of other inputs, such as fertilizer and pesticides. It is usually harvested by hand. Stems are cut close to the ground and left in the field to defoliate, before being tied in bundles to be retted the stems are immersed in gently flowing water to remove pectinals and other mucilaginous substances over a period of one to three weeks. Retting is complete when the outer fibrous layer of the stem separates easily from the inner woody core. The fiber is stripped from the stem, washed and dried. In recent years, world jute output has ranged from 2.3 to 2.8 million tonnes a year. India produces 60% of the world s jute, with Bangladesh accounting for most of the rest. Bangladesh exports around half its annual production as raw fiber, and half as manufactured items. India exports only tonnes of jute products, the remainder being consumed domestically. What are the prospects for jute? Prospects for jute products have brightened worldwide as manufacturers are increasingly searching for environment friendly and biodegradable materials to replace synthetic products. However, jute producers and processors have made very limited innovations in production and processing technologies.

8 Silk Developed in ancient China, where its use was reserved for royalty, silk remains the queen of fabrics FAO/F.BOTTS Silk is a premium-priced animal fiber produced by caterpillars of the genus Bombyx. A silk filament is a continuous thread of great tensile strength measuring from 500 to metres in length. In woven silk, the fiber s triangular structure acts as a prism that refracts light, giving silk cloth its highly prized natural shimmer. That, combined with other properties such as good absorbency and low conductivity, has made silk sought after for use in high-fashion clothes, lingerie and underwear, and in upholstery, wall coverings, rugs and carpets. FAO data shows that silk is produced in more than 20 countries around the world. While the major producers are found in Asia, sericulture industries have been established as far afield as Brazil, Bulgaria, Egypt and Madagascar. About one million workers are employed in the silk sector in China, the world s leading producer. Sericulture provides income for an estimated households most of them being small-scale and marginal farmers in India, and weaving families in Thailand. During its caterpillar phase, the domesticated silkworm, Bombyx mori, is fed on fresh leaves of the mulberry tree. It then secretes a liquid protein that hardens on exposure to air, producing a filament that is bonded by a second secretion, sericin, to form a cocoon. In sericulture, the larva is killed in the cocoon by steam or hot air, and sustained heat is used to soften the hardened sericin so that the filament can be unwound. As single filaments are too thin for utilization, several filaments are combined with a slight twist into one strand, a process known as filature or silk reeling. Sericulture is labor-intensive in all of its phases, from the cultivation of mulberry trees to reeling, dyeing and weaving. World production of silk has risen slightly in recent years, from around tonnes in 2000 to an estimated tonnes in 2006, thanks mainly to growth in China s output. In 2006, the top five silk producers were China, India, Brazil, Thailand and Uzbekistan. What are the prospects for silk? Silk continues to face competition from new, ever more sophisticated synthetic fibers. Because labor input is high, the viability of silk production will be threatened as labor costs rise in the producing countries, unless they can be offset by efficiency gains. Silk s image as a luxury fabric was also tainted by a boom in low-priced silk leisurewear.

9 Sisal Too coarse for clothing and upholstery, sisal is replacing glass fibers in many composite materials Sisal plants consist of a rosette of leaves around a hard trunk or bole. Leaves are cut individually and fed into a decorticator, where rotating wheels crush the leaf. The fleshy material is removed, leaving the fibers. In Africa, large centrally-located decorticating machines are used, with running water employed to wash away waste. In Brazil, where the drier climate limits water supply, portable scrapers are used. The fiber is further cleaned by brushing, and then baled for transport. WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE Sisal is extracted from the succulent plant Agave sisalana, a native of Mexico s Yucatan peninsula (another Mexican agave, A. fourcroydes produces a similar fiber called henequen). With fibers measuring up to one metre in length, sisal is classified as a hard fiber unsuitable for use in apparel or upholstery. It was used mainly in twine and ropes, but growing competition from synthetics, especially polypropylene, has weakened demand. Other markets are emerging today, sisal can be found in speciality paper, filters, geotextiles, mattresses, carpets, wall coverings and as reinforcement in plastic composite materials. By-products from sisal extraction can be used for making bio-gas, pharmaceutical ingredients and building material. Sisal is a hardy plant that grows well in a variety of warm climates, including dry areas unsuitable for other crops. It is cultivated for its fibers in Brazil, China, Cuba, Kenya, Haiti, Madagascar, and Mexico. Production patterns differ between countries. In Tanzania and Kenya sisal is predominantly a plantation crop, although some is produced by smallholders. Production in Brazil is largely in the hands of small farmers. Sisal farming normally requires no use of chemical fertilizers or herbicides. World production of sisal and henequen is estimated at around tonnes, valued at $75 million. The major producers are Brazil ( tonnes), Tanzania ( tonnes) and Kenya ( tonnes). Brazil exports around 100,000 tonnes of raw fiber plus manufactures; Kenya exports around tonnes and Tanzania tonnes. What are the prospects for sisal? To avoid competition from synthetic fibers, sisal producers need to continue to exploit opportunities offered by non-traditional markets and improve production and processing technologies. Although attempts have been made to design machines which are safer and more efficient, sisal extraction technology has changed little in the past 100 years. New propagation technology, such as meristematic tissue culture, has not been widely adopted.

10 Wool Limited supply and exceptional characteristics have made wool the world s premier textile fiber Sheep are usually shorn once a year in the spring/summer months, although in some countries shearing may take place as many as three times a year. Where production systems are advanced, the wool is rigorously tested to determine properties and different grades are packed separately. The second step in the production chain is so-called early processing, in which the wool is scoured to remove grease and dirt, carded and combed. It is then spun into yarn for use in fabrics, knitted garments or hand-knitting wool. MAGIC FOUNDRY Sheep were among the first animals to be domesticated, and the first textiles were probably woven from their fleece. Today wool is still the world s leading animal natural fiber: its complex protein structure is responsible for unique characteristics and properties such as exceptional resilience and elasticity that synthetic fibers just cannot match. Wool varies from super fine Merino fiber similar to cashmere, to very coarse hairy wools. The diameter of the fiber determines its final use and value. Some 37% of world production is classed as fine wools, 22% as medium wools, and 41% as coarse wools. Two thirds of the wool harvest is used in the manufacture of garments, and about one third in carpets, upholstery and rugs. Industrial uses of wool accounts for about 5% of the total. Wool is produced in about 100 countries from a global flock of more than one billion head of sheep. Major producers are Australia, Argentina, China, India, the Islamic Republic of Iran, New Zealand, Russia, South Africa, United Kingdom and Uruguay. Depending on the country and region, wool producers range from small farmers to large scale commercial grazing operations. FAO estimates annual wool production at around 2.1 million tonnes a year. Australia produces one fifth of that total, while China, New Zealand, Iran, Argentina and the UK each produced more than tonnes in Exports of greasy plus scoured wool amount to around tonnes annually. What are the prospects for wool? Being a luxury fiber, demand for wool is sensitive to economic trends. The current global economic slowdown is expected to affect wool negatively, particularly by reducing demand in China. Also, falling oil prices may reduce the cost of synthetic fibers. To compete with synthetics, the wool industry continues to invest in new technologies which have made wool more attractive to consumers (e.g. crease resistance and washability) and given it a wider range of uses, such as active sportswear.