Coir fibre and cocopeat industry

The Indian coir industry processes the fibrous mesocarp of coconut husk into coir fibre, yarn, rope, mats, geo-textiles and rubberised products, with cocopeat (coir pith) as a major co-product used as a horticultural growing medium and export commodity. India produces more than two-thirds of the world's coir products by volume and is the world's largest exporter of coir and coir goods.

Overview

The sector is regulated by the Coir Board, a statutory body under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), established in 1953 and headquartered in Kochi, Kerala. The Board administers research at the Central Coir Research Institute (CCRI) at Kalavoor and the Central Institute of Coir Technology (CICT) at Bengaluru, and runs market development and skill schemes for the industry.

Production geography

Kerala: approximately 57-61% of national coir output, with concentrations in Alleppey, Kollam and Ernakulam districts
Tamil Nadu: Pollachi-Coimbatore is the leading cocopeat export hub
Andhra Pradesh: contributes around 5% of coir industry activity
Karnataka and Odisha: smaller but growing shares

Products

Brown fibre is extracted from mature husk and used in mattresses, ropes and geo-textiles; white fibre from green husk, after retting, is woven into mats and yarn. Cocopeat is dried, screened and compressed into bricks or blocks and exported globally as a peat-substitute substrate for greenhouses, hydroponics and seedling production.

Employment and adoption

The industry employs more than 7 lakh workers, of whom roughly 80% are women, and supports household and cooperative-scale spinning, weaving and processing units, alongside large mechanised mills. Husk availability from coconut belts that grow varieties such as Ceylon Yellow (Coconut Ceylon Yellow) and Kerala Bondam (Coconut Kerala Bondam Dwarf) determines regional production capacity.

References

Coir Board. Ministry of MSME.
Coir Industry in India. India Brand Equity Foundation.