Regulation and Policy 

Standards for Cotton Quality Rewritten (September 15, 1999) 

China Daily, August 27, 1999.     The State Quality and Technical Supervision Administration has completed major revisions to its standards for the quality of cotton. 

The revised standards will be implemented in September and are aimed at guiding farmers to grow high-quality cotton. 

The administration has revised the standards to put higher requirements on Chinese cotton products and eventually sharpen the competitive edges of the textile industry. 

The current standards, drafted more than 20 years ago, are already outdated when compared with the rapid development of the cotton and textile industries. 

According to the previous standards, officials judged the cotton quality simply by observing and touching the products without using instruments, which is far from scientific, one expert with the China Fiber Examination Bureau said. 

However, in the revised standards, international standards of cotton quality as well as popular examination methods and devices will be introduced to motivate farmers to improve the quality of their cotton. 

The reform of the cotton distribution systems allows for considerable price differences between ordinary and high-quality cotton products, and officials are hopeful that this will further fuel farmers' enthusiasm to adopt the new standards to grow high-quality cotton and reap more profits. 

The standards also administer strict requirements on cotton, requiring farmers to avoid mixing animal hair, chemical fibres and other types of fibres with cotton.