KOLKATA: Threatened with the prospect of losing the U.S. tobacco packaging market, the Union Textile Ministry has decided to lobby on the issue in association with ITC (International Trade Centre) Geneva.

A Union Textile ministry source told The Hindu that relevant data had already been sent to the International Packaging Association of Tobacco Manufacturers, based in the U.S. Preliminary discussions with ITC were also over and a proposal on this matter was expected from them shortly.

Sources said that the U.S. had been India's biggest jute goods exports market for the last five to six years, importing hessian material for packaging peanuts, cocoa, coffee and tobacco.

The first danger signal appeared on the radar when a major importer said that his clients in the U.S. were refusing to use jute hessian cloth for tobacco packaging as a major U.S. cigarette manufacturer had asked his leaf tobacco suppliers not to pack their tobacco in jute hessian any more and instead wanted them to use carton boxes.

The main objection apparently was that end-users were finding it difficult to get rid of jute hessian sheets, whereas they could easily recycle empty cardboard boxes.

The cotton packaging sector too was looking at other packaging alternatives.

Textile Ministry officials admitted that if these trends were not reversed, then the bulk of the jute market — hessian, sacking and carpet backing cloth — would be in danger and there would be no point in pursuing issues such as alternative uses of jute, increased yields and improved productivity.

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