Mark Levkowitz, president and chief executive officer of Supima, said import duties on cotton in India have had an impact on shipments of Supima cotton to India. Mr Levkowitz, who was in Coimbatore on Monday to participate in the Cotton Day 2023 event organized by Cotton USA, said the duty is a disincentive for brands that want to buy products made from Supima cotton in India.
The production of Suvin (Indian extra long staple cotton) is very low and there is nothing to be defended (in India) by imposing duty on extra long staple American cotton Supima. He said, this duty is snatching away opportunities for Indian textile mills.
He said that globally there is a shortage in the availability of extra long staple cotton this year.
US Cotton Trust Protocol and Supima have collaborated to provide supply chain traceability and access to farm-level, science-based data. In the first four months of launch, 17,000 tonnes of fiber details have been uploaded to the project, which is positive and encouraging, he said.
