Organization and Performance of Cotton Sectors in Africa ... - infoDev

CHAPTER SEVENQuality ControlGérald Estur, Colin Poulton,and David TschirleyAs discussed in chapter 2, the fiber characteristics of African cottons aretypically superior to those of the cottons used in the calculation of theCotlook A Index. Because it is nearly all handpicked, African cotton isalso cleaner and has fewer neps than cotton of most other origins. For thesereasons, African cotton could command as much as a US$0.10/lb premium oninternational markets if the region could develop a reliable reputation for lintuncontaminated with foreign matter. 55 The typology suggests that concentratedsystems will be best able to achieve this potential premium, whereascompetitive systems are expected to show very limited ability to protect fiberquality and thus will achieve the lowest quality premiums (table 7.1). Thetypology predicts medium performance for national and local monopolies,with the main point being that actual performance depends critically on managementculture and, in local monopolies, regulatory effectiveness.Underlying these predictions is an understanding that two conditions mustbe satisfied if a sector is to produce high-quality lint. First, ginners must be ableto control their supply chains to receive high-quality seed cotton. Ginning canonly protect or damage fiber quality; it cannot enhance it. Second, the farmersmust have the incentives to achieve high-quality lint. This chapter investigatesthe extent to which these conditions hold in the study countries.The chapter first reviews common practices in each study country thataffect cotton quality, then develops estimates of the key quality indicator foreach country—the average realized premium achieved in international markets.It then examines performance across sector types and closes by comparingexpected with realized performance.87