A new research report by environmental research organization Toxic Link reveals, synthetic clothing is a huge contributor to microfibre pollution, especially in India, where synthetic apparel are capturing substantial market share.

Titled, ‘Dirty Laundry: Threads of Pollution – Microfibres,’ the report highlights, around 124 to 308 milligrams of microfibres are released per kilogram of fabric during washing. Synthetic textiles add approximately 35 per cent to the global release of primary microplastics to the world’s oceans, the report adds.

Apparel made of synthetic materials like polyester, acrylic, nylon, and others consists of plastics and denote around 60 per cent of the clothing material globally, the report states. It raises serious concerns regarding microfibre pollution in India, which is the second-largest producer of polyester and viscose in the world.

Though globally there is greater awareness among consumers, researchers found that the awareness in India regarding the concerns of synthetic textiles is negligible. In an earlier study done by Toxics Link, a high percentage of microfibre was found along the Ganges River in samples collected from Kanpur, Varanasi, and Haridwar. In another study by Toxics Link, water samples from Goa water treatment plant were found to have around 37 per cent of microfibre concentrations. The latest study stressed on the impact of microfibre pollution on environment and human health due to its minuscule size and capacity to penetrate different ecosystems.

The study also said that the country has no regulation or policy to check microfibre pollution caused by its mammoth textile industry. On the other hand, countries like France and the US have mandated brands to mention the presence of synthetic material and how it will leach microfibre pollution.

Textile Secretary ShriUpendra Prasad Singh inaugurated the seventh edition of GartexTexprocess India in New Delhi

A high-value business platform, the trade fair hosts 200 plus exhibitors with over 1,000 products and machinery from varied sectors.

Upendra Prasad Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, stated, the Indian government is working towards upscaling size and scale of textile industry through policies such as the mega textile park which is aimed at solving the problem of fragmented value chain as well as size and scale. Sustainability and circularity in the textile ecosystem also needs to be developed. We are also focusing on incentivising textile machine manufacturing to encourage foreign manufacturers to build textile machinery within India.”

Following a successful commencement of GartexTexprocess India New Delhi 2022, the organisers – MEX Exhibitions, and Messe Frankfurt India shared, artexTexprocess India has experienced 42 per cent growth in exhibitor participation in this edition.

Demonstrating India’s growing prowess in quality denim production, the Denim Show has featured top 25 denim mills bringing their latest denim products at the show, along with top denim manufacturer.

In association with Fabexa, Fabrics & Trims Show has converged around 70 Gujarat-based fabric manufacturers under a special pavilion to demonstrate the region’s local expertise in fabric, cotton and natural based fabrics. The exhibition is also set to host over 200 fabrics sourcing representatives during the remaining show days.

The organisers are also hosting an exclusive knowledge forum to impart in-depth insights on interesting industry topics, such as ‘impact of content creation’, ‘trends AW 2023’, ‘reducing audit fatigue through SLCP’, and ‘Fashion Forward – Challenges, strategies and opportunities.’

The plus size clothing market is expected to grow at a 5.7 per cent CAGR from $601.7 billion in 2022 to $1,044.3 billion by 2032.

The COVID-19 epidemic had a negative impact on the market share for plus-size clothing. The sales of plus size apparel have fallen as a result of a lack of labour, production issues like fabric shortages and order cancellations, lower exports, and a decline in consumer spending on non-essential items.

Sales of plus size clothing are anticipated to increase at the quickest rate during the duration of the prediction. The need for products that give the same level of luxury as customers in other sizes will increase the market for plus-size clothes between 2022 and 2032.

In response to the rising demand for plus size clothing, retailers are focusing on launching plus size apparel. In order to attract more customers, Walmart launched a new plus-size brand named Terra and Sky in 2018. High street plus size apparel retailers such as River Island, Marks & Spencer, and New Look offer a wide range of plus size items to suit demand.

This move by the multinational companies is anticipated to boost the sales of plus size clothing and plus size clothing market revenue growth in the forecast period.

The male category is expected to lead the plus size clothing market in terms of customer orientation. During the forecast period, the mid-priced plus-size clothing segment is expected to dominate the plus size clothing market. With the greatest obese population and the most money spent on plus size clothing, the United States leads the market.

Mohammad Ali Khokon, President, BTMA urged TipuMunshi, Commerce Minister to ensure RMG exporters make their MMF garments from locally produced yarn and fabric before offeringthem cash incentives. This would help Bangladesh develop the backward linkage industry in the country and achieve higher realisationof export proceeds, they argued, he added.

The request was made after the ministry backed a demand by RMG manufacturers that they be provided 5 per cent cash incentive on exports of non-cotton apparel items.

The commerce ministry then wrote to the finance ministry regarding the issue.

As global demand for MMF garments rises, BTMA member firms are producing viscose, polyester, various filament yarn and blended yarn using imported MMF and making 'deemed exports' to local RMG exporters, he said.

Several mills to produce MMF and its raw material PET chips are also being set up in the country to meet local MMF requirement, he said, hoping that these units will start production by the end of next year, according to Bangladeshi media reports.

Khokon urged the government to provide a 5 per cent additional cash incentive on exports of RMG produced from MMF, considering the three stages of production—yarn from MMF, fabric from yarn and then RMG production.

BTMA said around 0.15 million tons of MMF were imported in the last fiscal.

Nearly 400 cotton ginners, brokers, spinners, and traders from different parts of the country are attending the conference on Cotton Challenges Ahead 2022’ from August 05-06, 2022 in Coimbatore.

Organized by the Indian Cotton Federation and Indian Cotton Association, Bathinda, the two-day conference discusses the current issues in cotton, crop, farm technology, quality and funding. It was inaugurated by Textile Commissioner RoopRashi.

The programincludes discussions by panels of ginners, spinners, and brokers so that stakeholders from different segments of the cotton sector are able to express their views. It also holds sessions on global cotton scenario, ELS cotton and spinning technologies, said J. Thulasidharan, President, Indian Cotton Federation.

India moved from a cotton surplus to cotton deficient country this season. This should not repeat. Similarly, if funding support was available, textile mills would buy and store cotton in the beginning of the season. If the government extended support, it would be a win-win situation for farmers and the mills. The conference would pass resolutions on these subjects and submit them to the government

Japan’s garment and accessories imports surged by 24.8 per cent Y-o-Y to ¥233,597 million in June.

As per the provisional trade statistics released by Japan’s Ministry of Finance, the apparel and accessories import was 2.3 percent of the total import of ¥10,013,136 million during the month under review.

According to the latest data, the country imported ¥109,056 million worth of textile yarn and fabrics in June 2022, which was 34% higher than the same period last year. The import was 1.1 percent of the total import of Japan.

While Japan’s export of textile yarn and fabrics surge by 19% year-on-year and earned ¥70,249 million. The textile yarn and fabrics export was 0.8 percent of the total export of ¥8614,670 million from Japan during June 2022.

Also, Japan exported textile machinery worth ¥20,075 million and contributed 0.2 percent to total export.

The apparel market in Japan is huge as the country is one of the world’s major apparel consumption markets, with retail sales totaling $100bn in 2021, only after the USA ($476bn) and China ($411bn).

Japanese fashion apparel retailers and brands mainly source apparel from Asia. Data shows that Japanese fashion brands and retailers consistently imported more than 90% of clothing from the Asia region.

Japan’s top sourcing destinations include China and Vietnam.Bangladesh has notably grown really fast and the country’s apparel exports to Japan doubled in the last decade. Bangladesh’s RMG exports to Japan crossed the $1 billion mark in FY 2021-22 and witnessed a 16 per cent growth.

Eleven manufacturing industries in the US reported growth in July, with apparel, leather and allied products reporting the highest growth. As per the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business released by the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), textile mills reported the eighth highest growth among the eleven.

The new export orders index reading of 52.6 per cent grew by 1.9 percentage points compared to June's figure of 50.7 per cent. The imports index grew again in July, up by 3.7 percentage points to 54.4 per cent from 50.7 per cent in June. The new orders index registered 48 per cent—1.2 percentage points lower than the 49.2 per cent recorded in June.

The production index reading of 53.5 per cent is a 1.4-percentage point decrease compared to June's 54.9 per cent.

The prices index registered 60 per cent—down by 18.5 percentage points compared to the June figure of 78.5 per cent. This is the index's lowest reading since August 2020 (59.5 per cent).

The backlog of orders index registered 51.3 per cent, 1.9 percentage points below June’s 53.2 per cent.

The supplier deliveries index reading of 55.2 per cent is 2.1 percentage points lower than the June figure of 57.3 per cent. The inventories index registered 57.3 per cent, 1.3 percentage points higher than the June reading of 56 per cent.

Vietnam expects to earn $45.7 billion from garment-textile exports this year amid good results recorded since the beginning of this year and positive market developments.

As per the General Department of Vietnam Customs, as of mid-July, garment-textile was one of the four sectors posting the highest export revenue, with a record growth of 19.7 per cent totaling $20.4 billion.

Garment-textile was also among the six groups whose export value increased by over $1 billion USD, according to the authority.

Some 14,000 businesses are operating in the sector, with combined capital of over 1.1 quadrillion VND (46 billion USD) and net profits, nearly 1 quadrillion VND. They are employing about 200,000 laborers.

Vietnamese garment-textile products were shipped to 55 countries and territories worldwide, including 17 markets with a turnover of more than 100 million USD each.

The US, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK), Canada, China, Germany and Cambodia were major buyers of the Vietnamese products.

Representatives of KraigBiocraft Laboratories, Inc’s apparel brand SpydaSilk attended Vietnam's premiere textile and garment industry exhibition, SaigonTex.

The SpydaSilk team attended the Expo as part of its efforts to grow its network of suppliers. The team is working quickly to identify and partner with industry leaders capable of creating one-of-a-kind customer yarns and fabrics built upon Kraig Labs' recombinant spider silk technologies. These new exclusive yarns and fabrics will be the foundation of SpydaSilk's brand identity.

Since 1990, SaigonTex has brought together the largest collection of producers, suppliers, and buyers from Europe and Asia in the textile, fabric, and garment industry. Last week's exhibition marked the event's first return since 2019 after two years of COVID-19-related cancellations.

The company expects to release the second video in its behind-the-scenes series taking viewers inside its spider silk production facilities next week. This episode will bring you inside the R&D labs at Kraig and Prodigy as the team works to create tomorrow's super materials and monitors the performance and quality of current Dragon Silk production.

India’s largest farm-to-fashion natural fibre digital ecosystemReshaMandi is foraying into the global markets. The company offers a wide range of natural fabrics while adhering to sustainability, fair trade and ethical sourcing norms. ReshaMandi’s vision is to build a new world of textiles and transform the industry by providing accessibility, availability, and affordability for businesses and consumers looking for sustainable solutions.

ReshaMandi has provided more than 10 million meters of fabric in natural fibres to 500-plus domestic producers of fabric, apparel and home furnishings. Among, over 200 are exporters providing products to well-known brands across geographies. As fabric serves as the basic material for clothing and home furnishings, ReshaMandi currently supplies a variety of these essential goods to both the domestic and global markets. These include silk, cotton, viscose, bamboo, hemp and other natural fibres. ReshaMandi also sells textiles produced from materials like milk, soy, and other such natural sources.

According to the third annual Material Change Index from theglobal non-profit Textile Exchange, fashion brands are now using 50 per cent preferred materials — up from 44 per cent last year — curbing greenhouse gas emissions by 5 per cent and saving 1.9 million tons of COշ equivalent emissions.