Textile Focus presents Industry Opinion Powered by US Cotton Trust Protocol Episode 15 was on the topic- “Feedback on US Cotton Trust Protocol Membership.” Team Textile Focus received feedback from the industry stakeholders.
Mohammad Ali Khokon, Chairman, Maksons Group & President, BTMA
The global Apparel market is around 700 billion US$. And only the American market is about 36-37 billion US$. Four to five years back, Bangladesh’s market share in American Market was only around 3-4 billion US$, which is now 7-8 billion US$. The only reason behind this is US Cotton’s market share in Bangladesh was 4-5 %, four to five years back. Today this market share has become 11-14%. From a recent seminar on the Geo-political situation, we came to know that the more US Cotton Trust Protocol membership Bangladesh will have, the more Bangladesh RMG sector will get more focus from US buyers. Already Bangladesh has 100 US Cotton Trust Protocol members. If in this way the membership increases, I believe soon this country will reach a 10 billion US$ market share in USA apparel market.
Sharif Zahir, Managing Director, Ananta Group
US Cotton Trust Protocol was primarily connected with the spinners, manufacturers that work with the US cotton. Recently, they have tied up with the manufacturers. That is how Ananta Group has become a member of this trust protocol, by subscribing to the membership program. I think the goal of this trust protocol is to ensure the sustainability and traceability of the product. Basically, they are tracking in terms of dollars and in terms of volumes, how much US Cotton is purchased. Obviously, the US Cotton Trust Protocol has a very sustainable history of production. And through this, we are also being able to share this information with our customers that the cotton which has been used is sourced from creditable cotton sources. Along with that, US Cotton Trust Protocol is also providing us access to the information so that we can reach more customers that US Cotton Trust Protocol is working with. And we have found this membership quite beneficial in terms of the services that they have been providing.
Saleudh Zaman Khan, Managing Director, NZ Tex Group
NZ Tex Group is connected with US Cotton Trust Protocol from the very beginning. We believe, Current time is about sustainability. And so, as soon as the US Cotton Trust Protocol started, we became a member of this protocol. We have used cotton of various qualities such as BCI Cotton, Organic Cotton etc. But Cotton from US Cotton Trust Protocol requires less water compared to other types of cotton. This is very helpful for our environment and also for global warming. As a garment manufacturer, we buy cotton or yarn as per our buyer’s requirements. When the US Cotton Trust Protocol became available in the market, we noticed a concern among the buyers about the quality of cotton. If the cotton is from India or Africa, the buyers are preferring BCI cotton. On the other hand, if the cotton is from the USA, then the buyers’ preference is cotton from US Cotton Trust Protocol. Through this protocol, I think we can ensure sustainable growth as well as a better world for future generations.
Mahbubul Alam, Chief Operating Officer, Pahartali Textile & Hosiery Mills Ltd.
US Cotton Trust Protocol is a platform that has connected spinners, fabric processors and retailers. Today’s time is about traceability. If a retailer is buying a value-added product, he wants to know about the traceability of the product. US Cotton Trust Protocol is maintaining that traceability properly – from where the cotton has been bought, how much cotton has been bought, where the cotton is being supplied etc. this is how the retailer also feels comfortable that he was wanting a product made with US Cotton and he is getting the product made with US Cotton. The more US Cotton Trust Protocol membership will increase, the more US buyers we will get.
