The Hindu Business Line : ‘Time for coir producing nations to stand together’

Coir geotextiles do not have prescribed internationally accepted standards. The same is the case with the sanitary and phytosanitary standards for coir pith.

Our Bureau

Thiruvananthapuram, April 1

Coir producing countries around the world should think of joining hands through an institutionalised mechanism, according to Dr Christy Fernandez, former Chairman of the Coir Board.

An international forum of this kind would help promote product development and diversification through R&D, market development, quality improvement, technology transfer, human resources development and exchange of market intelligence.

This forum could also undertake generic promotion programmes, help prevent unhealthy competition, offer directions for production including in relation to supply side management issues, and take up issues of common interest.

One such issue pertains to tariff and non-tariff barriers that coir exporters face in international markets.

The duty applicable on import of coir and coir products ranges between 4 and 35 per cent. Handloom mattings, the major item of export from India, attract duty of up to 8.6 per cent for import into the US. Australia has slapped 8.4 per cent while it is 8 per cent each in the case of Portugal, Ireland, the UK and Finland.

As for coir yarn, import duty may be waived with respect to countries in the European Union, but those in the East European region and the East Asian region levy duty at a flat rate, ranging up to 20 per cent. In the Latin American region, it ranges between 9 to 12 per cent.

A duty of 8.5 per cent is being levied on import of coir geotextiles to the EU countries. This stands in the way of promoting the export of geotextiles.

Similarly, the coir pith is a natural substitute of natural peat and is widely used in the field of horticulture. It attracts a duty of 9 per cent in the LAC region and rates ranging from 5 per cent to 25 per cent to countries in the South Asian and West Asian region.

In fact, there should be nil duty on these products because they are eco-friendly products mostly originating from the developing countries.

TECHNICAL BARRIERS

The non-tariff barriers are mostly in the form of technical barriers. Coir geotextiles do not have prescribed internationally accepted standards. Because of this, end users are hesitant to accept coir geotextiles as s standard material for soil bioengineering applications.

The same is the case with the sanitary and phytosanitary standards for coir pith. Therefore, it is essential to prescribed international quality standards for coir geotextiles and coir pith.

Such issues ranging from tariff and non-tariff barriers can be taken up more effectively by a common forum than by individual countries, Dr Fernandez added.

Inadequate knowledge about the product and its end uses, non-availability of local skills lack of access to technology have led to the sub-optimal use of the abundantly available coir fibre. Natural fibres have suffered a setback in the global market in the face of competition from the synthetics.