According to the organisers of Cashmere World trade fair, UBM Ltd, the issue of overexploitation of cashmere is now a critical issue for the industry which must be addressed. Factors causing the phenomenon are discussed in the following in-depth article written by UBM industry insider Richard Smith - "Cashmere Industry - Overexploitation Must Inevitably End."

Now preparing for its 4th edition, to be held 24 - 26 October 2011 in Beijing, Cashmere World fosters international collaboration of cashmere professionals spanning this specialised industry. As well as the exhibition Cashmere World 2011 also hosts an industry forum where the following topics will be discussed:

• Standardisation of cashmere quality
• From cashmere to luxury consumption: Explore the market potential in BRICS
• Key success factors in developing the Chinese retail market for cashmere fashion
• How can you maximise profits by adding value to your cashmere products?
• Fake or genuine cashmere: How can China's grading system tackle quality issues?

Cashmere World is a vertically-integrated business platform for the international cashmere trade which aims to be a high-standard, annual meeting place for business, catalysing fashion trends and technology innovation, as well as promoting the unique qualities that make cashmere one of the world's most loved luxury materials.

Cashmere Industry - Overexploitation must inevitably end

By Richard Smith

"Burgeoning demand in the industrialized west and booming production of cashmere in China in the last ten years has brought down the prices of finished cashmere products almost to the price of a decent woollen sweater.

At retail prices of US$45 - US$55 for a cashmere sweater, can this product still be regarded as a luxury? Or has a huge increase in production of "cheap cashmere" from China succeeded in bringing down prices to such an extent that cashmere has lost its luxury status and is available to almost all strata of western consumer societies?

Environmental damage and its consequences

This would appear to be the case but before we can draw such a final conclusion, surely we must ask ourselves if the huge increase in production from China has resulted in inferior grades of cashmere due to a fall in the quality and health of the goat population caused by over grazing the grasslands of Inner Mongolia?

From 1949 to 2004, in just 55 years, the goat population of Inner Mongolia rose from just 2.4 million animals to 25.6 million - more than a 1000% increase. But the available grasslands for grazing did not increase in size and the result has been creeping desertification with an expanding Gobi desert.

 The 1930's US dustbowl is being recreated in 21st century Inner Mongolia and China and on a more dramatic note; the destruction of the grasslands could have serious consequences as the Aral Sea Disaster caused by diverting rivers to irrigate cotton plantations in the 1960's.

The drying up of the Aral Sea brought about hardship, loss of livelihoods for the fishing industry and dust storms. Desertification of the Mongolian grasslands would recreate both of the above mentioned scenarios for the goat herders.

Suffering goats do not produce quality cashmere

So many animals and so many goat herders have stressed the delicate environmental balance of these grasslands and since goats, as expert foragers, eat right down and devour the root, the grasslands cannot regenerate themselves as the plants and pasture die as the roots are destroyed by the goats.

Goats are becoming weaker, less healthy with half the life span of their parents and produce smaller quantities of fine down and of a coarser - that is lower - quality than animals of some 15 or 20 years ago. Herders have to buy grass and fodder to ensure the survival of their herds as they venture farther afield in search of suitable pastures.

The conclusion one can draw is that as grasslands are stripped bare and the deserts expand, there will be less cashmere for industry and production at the raw stage and manufacturers will not be able to satisfy consumer demand. This will result in increased prices for cashmere and the drying up of the supply of cheap materials that have flooded the market. Overexploitation of the natural environment will force prices higher and this will contribute to the reestablishment of cashmere as a luxury, high priced item allowing it to regain its former status in the consumer market place.

Irregular weather is also bad for business

The other fact which has prejudiced cashmere production has been irregular weather patterns with winters being too cold in Mongolia and too warm in Iran. Both sets of circumstances do not permit the best down to grow on the goats and this, combined with lean fodder, will certainly not produce the highest quality of cashmere required by top manufacturers.

Perhaps the only solution to the drama now unfolding on the Mongolian plains is to aim for a sustainable and regenerative cashmere industry. Overpopulation of goats = over grazing of available grasslands. Over grazing = less and poorer quality cashmere.

Less and poorer quality cashmere leads to a cheapening of the final product and endangers the traditional luxury status of cashmere items.

This is where a Cashmere Quality Mark can play a vital role in maintaining and defining quality and so contribute to putting an end to the free for fall that has developed principally from China. This concept was debated at last year's Cashmere World event held in Beijing.

Cheap cashmere - short term phenomenon?

The cheap cashmere bonanza will inevitably end as the grasslands so necessary for healthy goats continue to be denuded. Surely the buyers of the raw cashmere can pressure herders to work in a more sustainable way so as to protect the grasslands without which there will be fewer goats and hence less cashmere ending the irrationally high production levels which simply cannot be sustained.

As a limited natural resource perhaps cashmere was never intended for mass market consumption as has occurred in the last ten years or so. Prices fall, quality falls, the status of the product falls and all in the name of making more money in the shortest space of time.

This is destined to end in disaster which will affect everyone involved in the supply chain - from herders, to merchants, to buyers, to yarn and material manufacturers, to designers eventually hitting the manufacturing plants in Scotland and Italy where the finest cashmere items are created.

Sustainability is the solution

Infinite growth on a finite planet with limited natural resources and little husbandry is simply unsustainable. Sustainability is the key to a prosperous future of the cashmere industry and consumers should take note and consider only buying items produced on a sustainable basis, taking into account the environment.

The idea is to prevent the desertification that causes violent sand storms in Northern China and Mongolia with the dust travelling around the world on the jet stream. Dust storms in China have affected the air and visibility in the western United States, Canada and South Korea.

Quantity has definitely prejudiced quality in the world of cashmere. It will also end up destroying the grassland pastures unless a sustainable solution is found, proposed and adhered to.

In our next article we will discuss the benefits of sustainability for the cashmere industry using the British company Pure Collection as an example of what can and should be done in the interests of the whole industry."

If you are interested in knowing more about the cashmere industry, please join Cashmere World 2011 on October 24-26 in China National Convention Center in Beijing.

Please visit www.cashmereworldfair.com for further details.