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Facts
- The International Year of Natural Fibres is intended to raise awareness of, and promote demand for, sustainably produced natural fibres, and improve the lives of small farmers by fostering international partnerships for research and fair trade.
- For thousands of years, people all over the world have used fibres from plants and animals to make cloth, string and paper, and strengthen building materials.
- Roughly 30 million tonnes of natural fibres are produced annually worldwide.
- Many natural fibres are produced by small-time farmers and represent a major source of their income and contribution to their food security.
- Around 25 million tonnes of cotton are produced each year. China, United States, Pakistan, India, Uzbekistan, Turkey and Brazil are the major producers, with more than 80 countries, many in Africa, recording some production.
- Technological change and competition from artificial fibres have been pushing world cotton prices down for the past 50 years.
- Around 2.2 million tonnes of wool are produced each year. Australia produces around 25 per cent of this total, with China, New Zealand, Iran, Argentina, the UK and India each producing more than 50,000 tonnes in 2003.
- 2.3 to 2.8 million tonnes of jute are produced each year. India produces 60% of the world’s jute, with Bangladesh being the other major producer. Other countries, including Myanmar and Nepal, produce much smaller quantities.
- The rising costs of oil, together with a greater awareness of the environment and advances in technology, are creating an increasing market for natural fibres.
Source: http://www.fao.org |
Background
Why are fibres important?For thousands of years people have been learning how to cultivate plants and animals for the fibres they produce. Fibres are converted into yarns through spinning and other methods, then made into fabrics through processes like weaving, knitting and felting. The fabrics are then finished off with dyeing and printing, and made into various products.
Fibres turned into yarns allow people to make sails for travel, and clothes for warmth, protection and cultural significance. They help people catch fish for food, cushion hard surfaces, absorb spills, record thoughts on paper and construct buildings.
Fibres come from a variety of sources – the fruit, stem or leaves of plants; the fur or secretions of animals; or, more recently, wood and petrochemicals. Each fibre has its own characteristics when it comes to strength and texture (fine/coarse), size (length and thickness), stretchiness, crushability, shine and the ability to insulate, repel or absorb water. Each fibre needs to be grown and processed in a particular way, with differing costs for the people and environment.
Many fibre crops are grown and processed by small-scale farmers in the tropics, providing a vital source of income as well as food and building materials. With new research, the rising awareness of the environmental impacts of producing and disposing of synthetic fibres, and the rising cost of petroleum-based source materials, natural fibres offer increasingly practical alternatives.
What are natural fibres? Farmers around the world produce a wide variety of natural fibres, planting crops and rearing animals. Plant fibres may be from the plant’s fruit (eg cotton or coir), stems (eg flax, jute, kenaf and hemp) or leaf (eg sisal). Animal fibres are from the hair (eg wool from sheep, cashmere goat, mohair goat, alpaca, llama, vicuna, yak, camel and angora rabbit) or from secretions (eg silk).
Natural fibres are generally considered more environmentally friendly than synthetics in their production and disposal. However, there is great variation depending on the fibre and the growing conditions. Many chemicals are used to contain pests and weeds. Chemicals are also used in the processing and dyeing which can lead to water contamination.
Plant fibres – fruit
Cotton is a warm climate tree which lasts many years, although it has been domesticated to be grown as an annual shrub. It requires large amounts of water, long periods of extreme heat with low humidity and many nutrients. It can be attacked by a large number of pests so many chemicals are used. The introduction of Bt cotton (Bacillus thurengiensis), genetically modified to increase resistance to bollworm, has reduced pesticide needs in some places, reducing costs and improving farm workers’ health. Although more expensive to produce, organic cotton (which manages pests naturally through activities such as companion planting) is becoming increasingly popular.
Traditionally, cotton production is highly labour-intensive. Each cotton-ball is hand-picked then cleaned of seeds, dead leaves and other debris by ginning, carded to line up the fibres, spun into yarn and then woven into fabric. This hard work led to the exploitation of cotton workers who were imported as slaves from Africa when cotton growing expanded into southern America. Today, large-scale production is often carried out by machine. Subsidies in Europe and America have kept prices artificially low, threatening the livelihood of small-scale farmers in developing countries.
Cotton produces a soft fabric which ‘breathes’ as the fibre absorbs and releases perspiration quickly and is also a good heat conductor. It can stand high temperatures and takes dyes easily. Cotton is used to manufacture of clothes (eg denim jeans, t-shirts, underwear), household items (eg towels, sheets, curtains, carpets, upholstery) and industrial items (eg tents, bandages and medical cotton wool). In comparison with other natural fibres, however, cotton is rather weak. It is often blended with other fibres, such as polyesters, to improve its strength and reduce its crumpling.
Global trade in raw cotton amounts to more than seven million tonnes annually, much of which is imported by processing and manufacturing countries, and subsequently re-exported in the form of textiles and clothing. About 75% of world production comes from China (28 million 227 kg bales), USA (22 million bales), India, Pakistan and Brazil. Australia’s cotton (2–3 million bales) is grown in southern, central and north-western NSW and central and southern Queensland.
Coir, the fibre from the outer layer of coconuts, is produced in a great many tropical countries. Coconut palms grow to about 25 metres tall in sunny, humid areas on a wide variety of well-drained soils with a constant supply of fresh water. The major exporters, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, produce around 450,000 tonnes annually.
Coir is produced as a by-product of other coconut products such as copra (dried coconut flesh), oil and coconut flesh. The fibrous layer of the fruit is separated from the hard shell by driving the fruit down onto a spike to split it (de-husking). The husks are soaked in water for up to 10 months (retted) then beaten to break away the fibres.
The fibres are strong, light and withstand heat and saltwater. Young coconuts produce white fibre, which can be used for the production of yarn, rope and fishing nets. Older coconuts produce brown fibre which can be used for brushes and mattresses. Some newer applications are geotextiles, permeable fabrics used to stop erosion, suppress weeds and line hanging baskets.
Plant fibres – Bast or stem fibres
Flax (linen), hemp, jute, kenaf, ramie and nettles are annual plants grown for their fibres. The fibres, known as bast fibres, are located towards the outer edge of the stem and are extremely strong and lightweight. The plants are cut near the ground and soaked in water, then beaten to loosen the fibres. The fibre is then stripped from the core and dried before being spun into yarn or pulped for paper production.
Flax (linen) is an annual plant that grows to a height of one metre in cool wet areas. It produces one main stem about 40–80 centimetres tall three to four months after planting.
Flax produces linen, a soft, lustrous and flexible creamy white fibre which is easily dyed. It is stronger than cotton but less elastic. Linen does wrinkle but presses easily, although strong creasing will break the fibres. Linen is used for a range of textile products, including clothing and sheets.
Hemp is a deep-rooted plant which needs little fertiliser. It is used for textiles, rope and fine paper products. Hemp fabric is like linen in smoothness, wrinkling easily, but it withstands water better than any other textile product. China is the main producer, with Spain, Korea, the Russian Federation and Chile being other major producers.
Jute and kenaf grow to about three to four metres in six months. They require high temperatures and humidity and plenty of water but few chemical fertilisers and pesticides. They are grown mostly in India, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Nepal. They are used for packaging material (bags), carpet backing, ropes, yarns and wall decoration.
Ramie from East Asia belongs to the urticaceae or nettle family. It produces a large number of unbranched stems from underground rhizomes which can be harvested up to six times a year and has a crop life from of between six and 20 years. It is white in colour, extremely absorbent and quick-drying.
Plant fibre – Leaf
Sisal is a leaf fibre from drought-tolerant plants which grow with a large rosette of long, pointy, fleshy leaves. It is an important crop in China, Africa (Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar) and Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Haiti, Venezuela, and Cuba). Traditionally, sisal is used for cordage and sacking while more recent uses include carpets, composite materials and paper pulp.
Abaca is produced from the leaf stalk of a plant closely related to the banana. The harvested leaves are boiled to prepare the fibres. Production mainly takes place in the Philippines and, to a lesser extent, Ecuador. Only small quantities of abaca are now used in traditional cordage applications, with most being pulped for a range of speciality papers, sausage casings, tea bags, coffee filters, cigarette filters and bank notes.
Australian Aboriginal use of plant fibresMaking objects from plant fibres was an important activity in many Australian Aboriginal societies. The fibre was extracted or separated by soaking underground stems (rhizomes), leaves or bark in water until the non-fibrous tissue rotted away, then scraping it with a shell or sharp rock. Fibres were used for string, bags, rope, baskets and mats as well as ritual objects in religious ceremonies
Animal fibres
Wool, the fibre from the fleece of sheep or similarly hairy animals (eg alpacas, llamas, vicunas, yaks, camels, cashmere goats, mohair goats and angora rabbits) is produced in many places around the world.
After shearing, the wool is washed (scoured), carded and dyed before being woven or knitted into fabric. Wool is flexible, absorbs moisture (making it cool in summer and warm in winter), dirt resistant and flame resistant, and wears well. It is used to make fine clothing with coarser types used for bedding, upholstery and carpets.
Silk is produced from cocoons of the silkworm. After gorging itself on mulberry leaves, the silkworm secretes an unbroken fibre cocoon which is boiled and unwound to form the fibre which is then spun. As with many other natural fibres, China is the dominant producer. India, Vietnam, Thailand, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Brazil are also major silk producers. Silk is the strongest natural fibre. Silk absorbs moisture, dries quickly, will not shrink, is easily dyed, retains its shape, drapes well and has a natural shimmer. Silk is made into many lovely fabrics, such as satin, velvet, chiffon, crepe, brocade, taffeta, faille and shantung.
Manufactured fibres
Synthetic fibres are usually made of filaments extruded as liquid and formed into fibres. They may be made of natural materials such as cellulose (wood) or oil-based products. They can be produced very cheaply and in large amounts compared to natural fibres. The liquid is dyed before it becomes filament and so is difficult to dye after the fibre is woven into a fabric. Polyester, nylon and acrylic are the most popular synthetic fibres.
Rayon is an artificial fibre made from wood. It is very versatile, making fabrics which are soft, smooth, cool, comfortable and highly absorbent, but they do not insulate the body, which makes them ideal for use in hot and humid climates.
Polyester can be made from naturally occurring chemicals such as plant cuticles, as well as synthetics such as polycarbonate. Polyester fibres are strong and wrinkle-resistant, have low water absorption, and do not shrink. Polyester fibres are sometimes spun together with natural fibres to produce a cloth with blended properties. Woven polyester fabrics are used for clothes, home furnishings, tyre reinforcements, ropes, safety belts and plastic reinforcements with high energy absorption.
Objectives of the International year of natural fibres
- To raise awareness and stimulate demand for natural fibres.
- To promote the efficiency and sustainability of the natural fibres industries.
- To encourage appropriate policy responses from governments to the problems faced by natural fibre industries.
- To foster an effective and enduring international partnership among the various natural fibres industries.
Australia's
response The Australian Government helps developing countries in our region to reduce poverty and address food security by promoting trade liberalisation, peace and stability, good governance, security of land tenure, rural development and agricultural research. Agricultural support for developing nations is helping to reduce the environmental damage caused by ineffective and/or destructive farming practices.
The
global agenda
Millennium Development Goals
At the 2000 UN Millennium Summit, 189 world leaders from rich and poor countries alike committed themselves to a set of eight time-bound targets that, when achieved, will end extreme poverty worldwide by 2015. The Goals focus on reducing poverty and hunger, child mortality and the spread of disease and improving education, gender equality, maternal health, environmental sustainability and global partnerships.
Goal 1 (poverty and hunger), 7 (environmental sustainability) and 8 (international
partnerships) are particularly relevant to the International Year of Natural Fibres.
http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/
Making trade fairer
Agricultural and labour-intensive products produced in developing countries have faced high trade barriers for many years, limiting their growth. Since 2001, however, the Doha Development Round of the World Trade Organization has tried to negotiate a fairer system, reducing these barriers. The underlying details of the issues are extremely complex and no agreement has yet been reached.
http://www.wto.org/index.htm
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