CCI, TEXPROCIL sign MoU for branding of India’s Kasturi cotton

The Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council of India – Texprocil and the Cotton Corporation of India – CCI have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on branding, traceability, and certification of Indian Kasturi cotton.

Major cotton brands like US PIMA and Egyptian Giza have both adopted the industry-led method of branding and tracing cotton in India.

For instance, Cotton Egypt Association is the exclusive manager of the Giza Cotton trademark, which is owned by the Egyptian Ministry of Industry & Foreign Trade and the Alexandria Cotton Exporters’ Association (CEA). Similar to this, Texprocil will act as the sole manager of the Kasturi brand, which is controlled by the Ministry of Textiles, on behalf of Trade and Industry.

The MOU was signed on December 15 during the two-day Textile Conclave in Varanasi, which also happened to be the day of the Kashi Tamil Samagam.

Sunil Patwari, the chairman of Texprocil, thanked Piyush Goyal, the Union Minister for Textiles, Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, for giving Texprocil the task of being the implementing agency for branding the premium Indian cotton Kasturi in his remarks regarding the milestone.

Despite having a significant presence in the global cotton market, Patwari claimed that India has not yet been able to trademark its cotton types, unlike the USA’s PIMA Cotton and Egypt’s GIZA Cotton.

In an interview with the media on the final day of the Kashi Tamil Samagam in Varanasi, Goyal stated that the signed between CCI and TEXPROCIL will benefit cotton farmers and help them receive the true value of their produce owing to brand building and quality assurance.

Goyal elaborated on the conditions of the MoU, stating that it will support the textile sector’s efforts to adhere to the self-regulation principle by taking full ownership of the traceability, certification, and branding of Indian cotton. Over the course of three cotton seasons, beginning in 2022–2023 and 2024–2025, the Government of India will contribute an equal share of 15 crores.

By improving the international perception and valuation of Indian cotton, this mechanism will promote “Kasturi cotton India” as a premium brand and provide complete traceability of cotton from the origin farm level. It will also use QR Code-based certification technology to validate “Kasturi cotton India” at each stage. This will enable premium pricing by establishing Indian cotton as a dependable quality commodity on both the domestic and international markets.

The textile ministry held the Kashi Tamil Samagam in Varanasi, which attracted over 250 representatives from businesses and the MSME sector. 75 contestants were from the Tamil Nadu region.

Goyal also urged everyone to attend the special exhibition, “Viraasat,” which the ministry of textiles will host in New Delhi to commemorate 75 handwoven saris from India.