Govt urged to tackle infected cotton problem

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Textile Association (API) has urged the government to address the problem of cavitoma-infected cotton imported by PT Argo Manunggal International from Calcot Ltd. in California, the United States.

Anas Sukarmadji said yesterday that the dispute between Argo Manunggal, one of Indonesia's largest textile companies, is not an ordinary commercial problem that can simply be resolved through an arbitration body.

"The Indonesian government therefore should intervene into resolving the problem," Sukarmadji was quoted by the Antara news agency as saying.

He said he appreciated the quick and positive response from trade and industry minister Tunky Ariwibowo, who officially asked American Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman last week to help resolve the fungus infection.

"But I think the agriculture ministry should also investigate the problem as complained about by Argo Manunggal, especially because the U.S. supplies around 45 percent of Indonesia's annual imports of about 2 million bales," added Sukarmadji, who is an executive from the Kanindo textile group.

Tunky, asked by reporters after he attended the Indonesian summit yesterday, confirmed that he had written the U.S. secretary of agriculture asking for his cooperation in resolving the problem.

Argo Manunggal first raised the issue in January after discovering that the cotton fiber delivered by Calcot during the October-December period (20,545 bales) had produced an excessive amount of waste due to low fiber strength and had produced low- quality yarn.

Laboratory tests of the samples were taken from the consignment at the Japan Spinners Inspecting Foundation in Osaka, which concluded that the cotton had been infected with cavitoma fungus, according to the complaint report filed by Argo Manunggal.

The Indonesian textile company has lodged complaints with almost all the private and government agencies and organizations in the United States that deal with the cotton trade and quality certification.

Argo Manunggal claims that Calcot has not responded positively to the complaints.

However, Husein Aminuddin, the chairman of the Sekbertal Spinners Association, played down the complaint, arguing that it was an ordinary trade dispute that should be settled through an arbitration body such as the Liverpool Cotton Association Ltd., of which he is an associate director.

Moreover, Aminuddin contended, no other importers except Argo Manuggal had complained of a cavitoma infection.

Argo Manunggal argued in its complaint that it would resolve the dispute through one of the arbitration bodies.

"However, since the issue is related to disease infection the problem should be brought to the attention of the Indonesian and American governments," Argo Manunggal argued.

The United States Department of Agriculture also had a lukewarm reaction to the complaint. It said that cavitoma is a condition, not a disease organism, and is therefore a quality issue and not a phytosanitary one.(vin)