# Bremen Conference Preview: Are Cotton and Synthetics Really Competitors?

Author: Jim.Robinson
Published: 2012-02-16
Canonical URL: https://www.cottongrower.com/cotton-news/bremen-conference-preview-are-cotton-and-synthetics-really-competitors/

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Are cotton and synthetic fibers truly competitors, or do they actually complement each other? The answers to that question will go a long way toward determining the future direction of the global cotton industry, as the natural fiber continues to see increases in total consumption as its market share continues to slide.

Numerous lectures at the 31st International Cotton Conference Bremen, to be held March 21-24, 2012, will address the cotton vs. synthetics topic from different perspectives:

- Terry Townsend from ICAC (USA) will open the discussion with a comparison of country production costs, resource challenges and worldwide production estimates for both cotton and synthetic fibers.
- The Lenzing Company’s Dieter Eichinger will address the practical usage of “Cotton Compounds with TENCEL and Lenzing Modal.”
- Allen Terhaar will present a consumer’s view of the cotton vs. synthetics debate, as well as explain the meaning of some prominent global surveys on the topic.

Among the other topics to be discussed in Bremen:

- Syed Hassan Raza of Neelum Seeds will discuss cotton-production trends in the world’s fourth-largest producer, in his presentation on “Challenges and Perspectives for Pakistani Cotton Production.”
- Euratex President Alberto Paccanelli will address the future of textiles in Europe in his presentation on “Future Challenges in the European Textile Industry.”
- Mark Messura of Cotton Incorporated will talk about cotton’s return to the sports clothing sector in his discussion of “The Use of Cotton in the Sport and Outdoor Segment.”

**About ICA Bremen:** The International Cotton Conference Bremen, scheduled for March 21-24, 2012, is drawing closer. Trade-related and scientific subjects from the world of cotton will be discussed in the city’s Town Hall. Prominent speakers from all over the world will come to northern Germany to discuss the natural fiber – from cultivation and processing all the way through to the textile industry. For more information about this major industry event, please click [here](http://www.baumwollboerse.de/index.php?l=2&n=27,0,0).