KOCHI: At a time when manufacturing sector around the world faced a slowdown due to the pandemic-induced crisis, coir manufacturers in Kerala were working overtime to meet the deadline to deliver high number of export orders.
The reason behind the sudden spike: Europeans and Americans were discarding their old coir mattresses and mats after recovering from Covid. Also, an increasing trend among Americans to grow vegetables at their own homes resulted in a huge demand for coir pith from Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Coir exporters received a large number of orders from the United States, Europe and China during 2021-22, and they exported a record 12,34,855 metric tonnes of coir products valued at Rs 4,340.05 crore — 6.2% more compared to 11,63,213 metric tonnes exported in 2020-21.
“After the Covid wave struck Europe and America, people there started to discard used items and buy fresh products, especially mattresses and mats. This resulted in an increase in orders for coir products. But things have changed from the second quarter of 2022 and the orders have declined,” said Federation of Indian Coir Exporters Associations secretary-general Sajan B Nair.
The latest data from Coir Board showed that export of coir registered a growth of 14.8% in value during 2021-22, with the US continuing to be the top importer with 29.79% in value and 17% in quantity, followed by China with a share of 20% in value and 38% in quantity.
The other countries that imported coir from India are the Netherlands, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Spain, Australia, Italy, Germany and Canada. Coir Pith & Allied Products Manufacturers & Exporters Association president S Mahesh Kumar said there was a growing trend among people in America to cultivate vegetables in available spaces in their homes.
“As coir pith is the most conducive for grow bag vegetable farming, we received a lot of orders for it during 2021-22. We are not sure whether the trend will continue or not in the coming years,” he said.
While export of coir pith, tufted mats, coir fibre, handloom mats, coir yarn, power loom mats, rugs & carpets, coir rope and other coir products registered a growth, products like handloom matting, power loom matting, coir geotextiles and rubberised coir showed a decline in exports. Coir pith with export earnings of Rs 2,259.18 crore accounted for 52.05% of the total coir export followed by tufted mats with export earnings of Rs 1,001.15 crore.