A new report by ResearchandMarkets com predicts, global industrial hemp market will grow from $5.6 billion in 2020 to $17.4 billion by 2027. Experts in the US expect year 2021 to be a strong year for hemp production as more farmers will integrate the crop in their daily cultivation. Demand for hemp has been persistent in the US market. The crop is used in many different materials and products. As per a Yahoo report, it is used by fashion brands in new collections. Denim brand Levi Strauss & Co often uses hemp in jeans as it prevents the knees from wearing out.

Cheap rates and availability boosts demand

Experts claim, hemp is 10 times stronger than steel. It can be used by car and electric vehicle manufacturers to strengthen door panels and other vehicle parts. Henry Ford, Founder of Ford Motor Company often used hemp in cars designs. Hemp can also prove to be good substitute for wood as hemp-based materials are not only cheaper but also more easily available. Contractors can use hemp to make hardwood floors and wood paneling. They can use the material to create new concrete called ‘hempcrete’ from processed biomass.

Currently, flower strains of the CBD variant of hemp are in great demand. They are used by companies to create pet bedding and lining materials for animals of all sizes. Generation Hemp Inc, a Dallas/Fort Worth-based company, has set up a new company to process hemp by merging two entities, Energy Hunter Resources and Home Treasure Finders Inc.

Minimizing degradation with drying and testing

Since most hemp grown in the US is of the CBD and other cannabinoid variant, it is crucial to preserve the cannabinoid content and terpenes. Kentucky-based Halcyon Thruput offers advanced drying services to process hemp plants delicately in order to maximize quality and minimize degradation. The company’s cleaning system, removes hemp stalks, stems and seeds efficiently while the filtration system meets biomass specifications within hours of harvest.

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has directed all hemp farmers to have their crop tested on a regular basis. The Certificate of Analysis (COA) testing of hemp is done by extraction labs and third-party testing labs in key sectors of the business. Halcyon provides its customers with verified results in just a few minutes.

Connecting with buyers and distributors

Most of the hemp grown in the US is still dried by hand. The entire process is not only labor-intensive but also weather-sensitive. It forces farmers to deal with their buyers directly. Farmers can therefore, team up with service providers like Generation Hemp and GenH Halcyon to connect with buyers and distributors.

The waste generated from processing hemp, known as hurd or shiv, can be used to create hemp-based construction materials. It can also be used to make animal bedding. The hemp material can also be used in other industrial applications if farmers assure a consistent supply. Soon, the US may also be able to displace imports and become a self-reliant in hemp production.

Kornit Digital, a worldwide market leader in digital textile production technologies, has acquired all associated assets of Somerville, Massachusetts-based Voxel8.

Voxel8’s advanced additive manufacturing technology for textiles allows for digital fabrication of functional features with zonal control of material properties, in addition to utilizing high-performance elastomers adhering to inkjet technology.

By integrating Voxel8’s technology into Kornit’s product roadmap, the company will be able to transform numerous market segments and verticals, accelerating our collective visions and technology advancements, said Kobi Mann, Chief Technology Officer, Kornit Digital

Voxel8 offers direct 3D print-on-part capabilities, advanced design software that can be easily integrated with any production floor software workflow, and versatile chemistry enabling on-the-fly formulation of high-performance elastomers to change the material properties of the resulting printed structures by multiple orders of magnitude. This means reflective, high-density, silicone and metallics, as well as compression elements for sports and therapeutics, protection elements like cushioning and impact resistance, and functionality applications like anti-slip, waterproofing, and other qualities combining form and function that are key to Kornit’s vision of digitizing production in every conceivable manner, he added.

American clothing resale platform ThredUp reported a 26.7 per cent growth in revenue in the second quarter.

As per Apparel Resources, ThredUp’s revenues touched $59.96 in the quarter that ended 30 June 2021, which was much more than $47.34 million it posted a year back.

ThredUp’s active buyers also rose to 1.34 million, with orders of 1.22 million. However, the resale platform’s net loss widened to $14.38 million, its gross margin expanded to 73.6 per cent from 69.7 per cent a year before.

ThredUp has been growing lately! Besides some impressive revenue numbers in recent times, it also recently announced its plans of buying fashion resale business Remix Global AD in its endeavour to expand to Europe.

This deal is expected to conclude in the fourth quarter of this year. Founded in 2009, ThredUp has been successfully selling secondhand clothes online.

Retailers across the globe are worried over the recent surge in coronavirus cases in Vietnam.

While Nike and adidas are already worried over some of their suppliers shutting down plants in Vietnam, Under Armour too, is facing product delays.

The American fashion retailer may have to cancel certain orders in the second half of 2021 owing to delays happening due to sourcing challenges in Vietnam.

Over the last few months, Vietnam has been battling the pandemic as a result of which manufacturing and logistics issues as well as lack of availability of containers have hampered the flow of goods for Under Armour and other retailers.

While the retailer is already devising strategies to source products from different parts of globe, for apparel and footwear suppliers in Vietnam, it will be a big challenge to ensure they do not lose orders and run into losses.

Notably, Vietnam and Jordan are two of the top two sourcing nations for Under Armour, accounting for 30 per cent and 20 per cent sourcing, respectively.

As per latest Manufacturing Institute of Supply Management (ISM) ‘Report on Business,’ though the US manufacturing index grew in July, the textile sector reported major declines in growth, new orders and production. The July Manufacturing PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) registered a decrease of 1.1 percentage points from the June reading of 60.6 percent, said Timothy R. Fiore, Chairman, ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee, said. ISM’s Business Survey Committee panelists reported that their companies and suppliers continue to struggle to meet increasing demand levels.

As per a Sourcing Journal report, ISM’s New Orders Index declined to 64.9 percent in July. Of the 18 manufacturing industries, 15 reported growth in new orders in July, led by furniture and related products. The only industry reporting a decline in new orders in July was textile mills, while apparel and leather products reported flat orders.

The Production Index registered 58.4 percent in July, 2.4 percentage points lower than the June reading of 60.8 percent.. The only industry reporting decreased production in July was textile mills, with 16 industries reporting growth in production.

The delivery performance of suppliers to manufacturing organizations was slower in July, as the Supplier Deliveries Index declined to 72.5 percent from 75.1 percent in June. All 18 industries reported slower supplier deliveries in July, led by apparel, leather and allied products, and furniture and related products and including textile mills. The Inventories Index registered 48.9 percent in July, 2.2 percent lower than the 51.1 percent reported for June, reversing two months of expansion.

Scott Baxter, President and CEO, Kontoor Brands believes the trend of global casualization is here to stay with jeans and T-shirts becoming more acceptable as workwear. The pandemic has caused a tremendous change in the way consumers dress for work shifting workplace attire norms towards more casual. A survey conducted by the company reveals, 84 per cent people plan to upgrade their wardrobes and include more casual wear items.

Casual apparel companies plan to go even more casual. For example Levi’s recently announced plans to acquire yoga apparel brand Beyond Yoga. The company expects the move to generate more than $100 million in total sales revenue for the 2022 fiscal year

Beyond T-shirts, jeans and yoga pants, companies that made formal wear mandatory to offices, now plan to allow polo shirts, half-zip fleece jackets or short-sleeve button-ups. Companies that still require employees to dress in formal attire might allow shirt meant to be worn untucked.

Since launching the innovation platform Fashion FWD Lab by the end of 2020, Bestseller’s innovation team has been working with its investment arm Invest FWD to identify right investment opportunities in sustainable fashion. Bestseller has made investments in innovators Circular Systems, Nature Coatings and Evmu. These investments will enable the company to combine access to capital with a brand perspective that will accelerate positive outcomes for innovators and the broader industry on the most critical sustainability issues,

All the three innovators, Circular Systems, Nature Coatings and Evrnu have shown great promise, addressing different aspects from sustainable feedstock to sustainable processes. Fashion FWD Lab has been working with these innovators for some time to ensure that they are the right investments with the necessary potential. These investments demonstrate Bestseller’s willingness to move backwards in its value chain and invest at the fiber level.

Bangladesh’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows in the textile and weaving sector increased 11 per cent to $271 million in 2020. Data from the Bangladesh Bank shows, Bangladesh received $271 million as foreign direct investment, in 2020. As per a Textile Today report, South Korea was the largest investor with an investment of $50.32 million followed by Kong $35.11 million, China $25.19, the United Kingdom $14 million, the Netherlands $6.18 million, USA $11 million, the British Virgin Islands $26.46 million, Sri Lanka $22.36 million and India $11 million.

Industry leaders welcomed the foreign investment in the segment. The investments will enable the sector to diversify products and knowledge sharing, said Faruque Hassan, President, BGMEA

Hassan also suggested attracting more foreign investment in fabrics manufacturing in woven mostly, while there are opportunities for value-added products

To become self-sufficient in raw materials for high end products, the government should offer an opportunity to attract foreign investors with large volume investment, said Khondaker Golam Moazzem, Research Director, Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

The FDI can help the apparel sector attract capital and skilled workforce, added Moazzem. He opined that FDI should come in backward linkage and textile sector also as still we are importing huge amounts of fabrics.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has accused Grasim Industries of abusing its position in the staple fiber market by charging discriminatory prices to customers, denying market access and imposing supplementary obligations on them. However, the regulator has not imposed any monetary penalty on the firm, considering that a fine of Rs 301.61 crore has already been imposed through an order passed in March 2020 with respect to substantially similar conduct.

Besides, the period of contravention in the instant case (2017-18) was in continuation of the period of contravention in the previous case (2012-2017) and thus partly overlapped. The Commission criticized Grasim Industries’ efforts to seek details of VSF consumed from the domestic spinners to provide discount as an attempt to control the entire market by putting conditions upon small players and interfering with their freedom of trade.

In the case of one of the informants, Grasim Industries withdrew all discounts/credit notes, making the supply of VSF costly for it, resulting in the VSF yarn manufactured by it becoming uncompetitive.

In a meeting with leading industry associations, Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) advised export-oriented yarn makers not to increase yarn prices further. The association revealed plans to form a committee or arbitration cell shortly, comprising representatives from the textile, terry towel and linen and ready-made garment sectors to fix the upper ceiling price of yarn for the local market.

As per a Financial Express report, the virtual meeting was attended by Faruque Hassan, President, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA); AKM Salim Osman, President, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA); Shahdat Hossain Sohel, Chairman, Bangladesh Terry Towel and Linen Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BTTLMEA; Mohammad Ali Khokon, President, BTMA and Tapan Chowdhury, Former President, BTMA

The emergency meeting was convened after the BGMEA, BKMEA and BTTLMEA leaders expressed their concern over the rising trend of yarn prices in the local market for last couple of months.