NEW: CSITC / ITMF Testing Data Intepretation Guideline now available


Standardized high volume instrument testing is carried out widely today and is becoming more and more the basis for cotton trading instead of manual classing.

To enable reliable and comparable test results from cotton testing laboratories worldwide, a universal and comprehensive manual, covering the best practices for commercial instrument testing of cotton fibers from sampling to data reporting, was produced jointly by the CSITC Task Force and the ITMF-ICCTM in 2012. It is maintained continuously as the Guideline for Standardized Instrument Testing of Cotton, hereafter referred as to CSITC Testing Guideline.

Going forward, the ITMF-ICCTM and CSITC Task Force then agreed to work jointly on this current Guideline, hereafter referred as to ITMF-ICCTM and CSITC Interpretation Guideline. This Guideline aims to explain how to interpret and apply results produced by a range of instruments used by the different segments of the cotton industry. The segments include measurements during seed-cotton production through to spun yarn and dyed fabric.

This guideline is now available in its first version (V1)!

This document is the temporary result of a work in progress that will evolve with its successive versions. These versions will be produced in the future, in particular based on the ideas, reflections, questions and comments that will be brought to us by readers and users. So please do not hesitate to come back to any of the contributors for future improvements of this document!

The Guideline is provided free of costs, and is available for download on ITMF.org, ICAC.org and CSITC.org (csitc.org website --> Technical information - instrument testing --> Public Information)


The Guideline is available in several languages, and other cotton-typical languages will be added with the time.