Textiles 2012: The Prognosis Good

The U.S. industry’s rebound from the lows of the last decade is expected to continue into another year.

Robert S. Reichard, Economics Editor

The $70 billion U.S. textile and apparel sector is alive and, in fact, doing quite well. Too upbeat an appraisal? Not really — given the fact that even in today’s relatively lackluster business climate, these industries have managed to rack up gains for two consecutive years.

To be sure, the increases have been rather modest. Nevertheless, they mark a major change from the steady tattoo of declines and retrenchments that marked most of the past decade.

And the good news is almost sure to spill over into the new year. Again, any improvements will be far from spectacular. But, by and large, overall production, shipments and profit numbers should end up at or above 2011 levels when all the results are in.   To read the full story please click here.

CRAiLAR Voted Quality Fabric of the Month

A big thanks to Textile World for featuring CRAiLAR Flax as Quality Fabric of the Month!

CRAiLAR® Flax is soft like cotton, has a similar colour, possesses similar performance traits and is cool and comfortable to wear year-round.  CRAiLAR® Flax and cotton look the same, fit the same and wash the same.  Still, CRAiLAR® Flax fibers shrink less than cotton fibers do, wick moisture better, and have increased dye uptake meaning they take less chemicals to reach the same color levels.

With cotton prices currently over a $1.50 per pound, flax is a cost-effective raw material for fiber production.  We estimate that in 2011 we will be able to provide CRAiLAR® Flax for between $0.90 and $1.25 per pound, making it an economically viable complement to cotton.

Read Textile World’s article to find out how CRAiLAR® made the cut!

CRAILAR named Fabric of the Month

We would like to thank Textile World for featuring Crailar® as Quality Fabric of the Month.

Hemp is one the most environmentally friendly bast fibers in the world requiring no pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers and very little water to grow and it can be grown in a wide range of geographical areas. Hemp exhibits up to eight times the tensile strength of cotton, and fabrics made from hemp are more insulating, absorbent and more durable.

Read Textile World’s article to find out how Crailar® made the cut!