Brazil’s Textile and Clothing Industry: Its Role in the Americas and the World
October 11, 2010 Session Moderator:
George Vidor, Editor, Globo Newspaper
Thoughts on cotton and the Brazilian textile market:
“In the middle of the 1990s, Brazilian cotton imports reached 1 million tons. But a few years later, Brazil returned to exporting cotton because the production jumped in new areas, including Mato Grosso (many farmers there produce both soybeans and cotton, in rotation).
“Last year, Brazil exported 500,000 tons of cotton (US$ 700 million) but that amount declined in the first part of this year to 135,000 tons. The main customers were South Korea, Indonesia, Pakistan, China, Thailand, Argentina and Turkey. The quality of Brazilian cotton is now very good, but our textile and clothing industries complain that the cotton goes to Asia and returns as manufactured apparel.
“Without Brazilian cotton, the national clothing and textile industry would have gone bankrupt. Many traditional factories have closed their doors over the last 30 years. Others survived, but they say that Asian competitors are not fair. However, Brazil remains the second-biggest producer of jeans in the world.
“Cotton will never be substituted. It’s an age-old culture. Although the quality of man-made fibers is better each year, Brazilians have an appreciation for good cotton textile products.”
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