Indian farmers, ginners, brokers and other delegates present in the Seminar asked several questions concerning Australian cotton and opportunities for Indian cotton and textile sector and a very lively and interesting discussion ensued.
A delegation from Australian Cotton Shippers Association (ACSA) comprising the Cliff White, Chair, ACSA; Jules Willis, CEO; Shay Dhareula, Ecom Commodities; Joel Hatherell, Olam Agri and Theodare Immanuel, Director, Austrade visited the Cotton Association of India (CAI). The delegates had a very fruitful introductory meeting with the CAI Board of Directors and they were taken around the historic Cotton Exchange building, which is a 100-years old heritage structure.
Thereafter, a Seminar on Australian Cotton was held in the Conference Room of the CAI which was attended by a large number of representatives from the Indian cotton trade and textile industry. In his welcome address, Atul S Ganatra, President, CAI, laid emphasis on the advantages of the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement which came into force on 29 December 2022, allowing duty-free access to Australian cotton into India with a specific quota of 51000 tonnes per year. Ganatra also exhorted the need for greater cooperation and further strengthening of business relations between the cotton industries of both countries. Thereafter, White made a very informative presentation on the Australian cotton scenario which was followed by one-hour Question-Answer session. Indian farmers, ginners, brokers and other delegates present in the Seminar asked several questions concerning Australian cotton and opportunities for Indian cotton and textile sector and a very lively and interesting discussion ensued.
Later, in the evening, a Welcome reception for the visiting delegates was hosted by the CAI at the Cricket Club of India, where an MoU was executed between the CAI and ACSA envisaging mutual cooperation and to combine their efforts in the areas of exchanging ideas and information concerning cotton production, trade trends, global pricing, market outlooks, etc. relevant to both countries and to strengthen trade and improve market access and reciprocal support in assisting dialogue supporting the interests of their cotton industries. Ganatra and White signed this MoU in the presence of a large number of dignitaries and representatives from the trade and industry who were present on the occasion.