Exports & Market context

• Textiles & apparel exports (India, FY25): US$36.6 bn. Of this, Cotton Textiles ≈ US$12.1 bn (33%) and Man-Made Textiles ≈ US$4.9 bn (13%). “Sustainable” attributes (organic/recycled) are not broken out in customs data; they sit within these fibre categories. IBEF
  
• HS coding reality: HS codes follow fibre type/form, not the “sustainable” attribute (e.g., organic/recycled). For imports/exports, traders use the conventional HS line (cotton ch. 52; man-made fibres ch. 54–55). Regulators (e.g., USDA NOP) explicitly note that many commodities lack dedicated “organic” HS codes, so conventional codes are used. U.S. Customs and Border Protection
  

A) Organic Cotton (India)

Why India?

• Global leader by production: India has been the #1 organic cotton producer for multiple seasons (e.g., 38% of global organic cotton in 2020/21 per Textile Exchange). Later coverage continues to cite India as the leading producer. Textile ExchangeFrance 24
  
• Where in India? Large certified organic areas under the national NPOP scheme are concentrated in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Odisha, Karnataka, etc. (useful for origin mapping). APEDA+1
  
• Certification ecosystem strength: India has the largest number of GOTS-certified facilities worldwide (GOTS Annual Report 2024; ~15,441 facilities globally, with India leading). This underpins capacity for certified spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing, and CMT. 2024.global-standard.orgHome Textiles Today
  

Quality & Compliance (what buyers check)

• GOTS v7.0 requires products to contain ≥70% certified organic fibre (“made with organic”) or ≥95% (“organic”) plus robust chemical, environmental, and social criteria across the chain. Use Scope & Transaction Certificates with CCS chain of custody. global-standard.org+1
  
• OEKO-TEX 2024: tighter PFAS (total fluorine 100 mg/kg) limits in STANDARD 100 and related schemes—commonly required for finished goods. oeko-tex.com+1
  

India-specific strengths

• Deep certification footprint (top GOTS country) + programmatic support (APEDA/NPOP) enable scale at farm and processing. 2024.global-standard.orgAPEDA
  
• Region-level environmental data: Organic Cotton Accelerator’s India-specific LCA (2025) gives buyers localized impact deltas vs conventional—useful for ESG claims. Organic Cotton Accelerator
  

Export notes & HS lines

• Typical HS: cotton yarn 5205–5207, woven fabrics 5208–5212, knit apparel **61.**xx, woven apparel **62.**xx. (No “organic” HS.) Ensure GOTS/OCS certificates accompany shipments to evidence claims. GOV.UKU.S. Customs and Border Protection
  

B) Bamboo-based Textiles

What it really is

• Most “bamboo” textiles are viscose (rayon) made from bamboo pulp—legally required to be labelled as “rayon/viscose made from bamboo,” not “bamboo fibre,” in markets like the US. Buyers should reflect this in labeling and product specs. Federal Trade CommissionConsumer Advice
  

India-specific strengths

• India hosts Birla Cellulose (Grasim)—one of the world’s largest viscose/MMCF producers—rated “Dark Green Shirt” (top tier) in Canopy’s 2024 Hot Button Report for responsible wood/pulp sourcing. This de-risks deforestation claims in MMCF sourcing from India. canopyplanet.orgGrasim
  
• Domestic bamboo resource base (notably in the North-East and central India) and a National Bamboo Mission to develop bamboo value chains—relevant to future local pulp/feedstock opportunities (current MMCF pulp is globally traded). nbm.da.gov.in+1
  

Quality & Compliance (what buyers check)

• MMCF chemical controls: zero-discharge programs and ZDHC MRSL v3.1 conformance for wet processing chemicals; ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines for viscose/lyocell sites. mrsl.roadmaptozero.comdownloads.roadmaptozero.com
  
• Canopy Hot Button scores for MMCF suppliers to evidence low-risk pulp sourcing (ancient/endangered forest protection). Buyers often require FSC/PEFC-backed pulp sourcing declarations as well. canopyplanet.org
  

Export notes & HS lines

• Viscose staple fibre and yarns/fabrics ship under man-made fibre HS codes (e.g., 5504.10 viscose staple fibres; downstream as yarn/fabric in ch. 55/54/60/61/62). Again, no HS flag for “bamboo”. EximGuru
  

C) Recycled Fibres

Market status & trends

• Recycled polyester (rPET) dominates recycled fibre use globally. Textile Exchange reports recycled polyester’s share ~14% of global polyester in 2022 (down from 15% in 2021 due to feedstock competition), while recycled fibres overall ~7.9% of total fibre in 2022. Textile Exchange
  
• 2024 update (TE Materials Market Report): cotton stayed ~24–25 Mt; 28% of all cotton was produced under “sustainability programs” in 2023 (context for buyers mixing recycled/organic/regen claims alongside cotton). Textile Exchange
  

India-specific strengths

• Large MMF industry: India is among the top global producers of polyester and viscose, supporting big-scale rPET conversion and yarn/fabric manufacturing. ministryoftextiles.gov.in
  
• Plastic collection/recycling momentum (EPR + India Plastics Pact): India is pushing higher PET collection and input recycling rates for bottles—important because 99% of rPET has historically come from bottles. sustainabledevelopment.inTextile Exchange
  

Quality & Compliance (what buyers check)

• GRS / RCS (Textile Exchange) for recycled content + chain of custody (CCS):
  
  • RCS can certify ≥5% recycled content (RCS Blended / 100), business-to-consumer logoing depends on label rules. ceres-cert.de
    
  • GRS covers processing, chemicals & social criteria; 20%+ recycled for B2B claims; 50%+ required for consumer-facing GRS labelling. Textile Exchange+1
    
• Common add-ons: OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100 for finished goods chemistry and ZDHC MRSL v3.1 at wet-processing sites. oeko-tex.commrsl.roadmaptozero.com
  

Export notes & HS lines

• rPET staple fibre and filament are classified by polyester fibre form, e.g., 5503.20 (polyester staple fibre) or relevant yarn/apparel headings; “recycled” isn’t distinguished in HS. Ensure GRS/RCS Transaction Certificates accompany export documents. Trademo
  

What’s “specific to India” that buyers can leverage?

1. Scale + Certification Density
   India leads in GOTS-certified facilities and has deep NPOP coverage across key cotton states—useful for building fully certified farm-to-fashion chains within India. 2024.global-standard.orgAPEDA
   
2. Integrated MMCF & Polyester clusters
   Presence of tier-1 viscose producers with strong Canopy ratings (Birla Cellulose) and extensive polyester capacity makes India suited for blended sustainable programs (e.g., organic cotton x Livaeco viscose; or rPET athleisure). canopyplanet.orgministryoftextiles.gov.in
   
3. Policy tailwinds for circularity
   India’s plastic EPR and industry pacts are improving rPET bottle-to-fibre feedstock flows—critical for scaling recycled polyester. sustainabledevelopment.in
   

Practical buyer checklist (India)

• Organic cotton: Demand GOTS v7.0 (or OCS where GOTS not feasible), verify Scope & Transaction Certificates, and consider OCA-linked programs for region-specific LCA data (helps with Scope 3 and eco-claims). global-standard.orgOrganic Cotton Accelerator
  
• Bamboo/MMCF: Specify viscose (or lyocell) made from bamboo; request Canopy Hot Button score and FSC/PEFC pulp declarations; require ZDHC MRSL v3.1 and wastewater guidelines conformance for wet processing. canopyplanet.orgmrsl.roadmaptozero.com
  
• Recycled fibres: Choose GRS (preferred for end-product claims with ≥50% recycled content) or RCS (≥5% permitted; simpler chain-of-custody). Align with OEKO-TEX 2024 PFAS rules on finished goods. Textile Exchange+1oeko-tex.com
  
• HS & paperwork: Use conventional HS by fibre/form; attach certificates (GOTS/OCS/GRS/RCS) to back sustainability attributes—since HS itself won’t reflect “organic/recycled”. U.S. Customs and Border Protection
  

Quick technical appendix (handy HS references)

• Cotton yarn/fabrics: 5205–5207 (yarn), 5208–5212 (woven fabrics), 61/62 for apparel. GOV.UK
  
• Viscose staple fibre (includes “bamboo viscose”): 5504.10 (India tariff schedules list under 5504). EximGuru
  
• Polyester staple fibre: 5503.20 (rPET included here). Trademo
  

Notes on data coverage & limitations

• India’s official export statistics do not isolate “organic” or “recycled”—hence we triangulate market/certification reports (Textile Exchange, GOTS) with India’s export splits (IBEF) and compliance standards. IBEFglobal-standard.org