Coir Fiber

Coir is a coarse fiber obtained from the tissues surrounding the seed of the coconut palm, Cocos nucifera. The intact fruit has a smooth leathery skin above the thick fibrous layer. This surrounds the stony dark brown shell, which is actually part of the fruit rather than the seed. Inside the shell are the papery brown outer layer of the seed surrounding the nutritious white flesh and the embryo.

Brown Fiber Processing

The fibrous husks are soaked in pits or in nets in a slow moving body of water to swell and soften the fibres. The long bristle fibres are separated from the shorter mattress fibres underneath the skin of the nut, a process known as 'wet-milling'.

The mattress fibres are sifted to remove dirt and other rubbish, dried and packed into bales. Some mattress fiber is allowed to retain more moisture so that it retains its elasticity for 'twisted' fiber production. The coir fiber is elastic enough to twist without breaking and it holds a curl as though permanently waved. Twisting is done by simply making a rope of the hank of fiber and twisting it using a machine or by hand.

White Fiber Processing

To separate the white fibres, the immature husks are suspended in a river or water-filled pit for up to ten months. During this time micro-organisms break down the plant tissues surrounding the fibres to loosen them - a process known as retting. Segments of the husk are then beaten by hand to separate out the long fibres which are subsequently dried and cleaned. Cleaned fiber is ready for spinning into yarn in the home using a simple one-handed system or a spinning wheel. The final operation is grading before sale and shipping. 

 

Uses of Coir

Brown coir is used in brushes, doormats, mattresses and sacking. A small amount is also made into twine, used in this country as hop strings. Pads of curled brown coir fibre, made by 'needle-felting' (a machine technique that mats the fibres together) are shaped and cut to fill mattresses and for use in erosion control on river banks and hillsides. A major proportion of brown coir pads are sprayed with rubber latex which bonds the fibres together to be used as upholstery padding for the automobile industry in Europe. The material is also used for insulation and packaging.

The major use of white coir is in rope manufacture. Mats of woven coir fiber are made from the finer grades of bristle and white fiber using hand or mechanical looms.

Major Producers of Coir Fiber

Total world coir fiber production is 250,000 tonnes. The coir fiber industry is particularly important in some areas of the developing world. India, mainly the coastal region of Kerala State, produces 60% of the total world supply of white coir fiber. Sri Lanka produces 36% of the total world brown fiber output. Over 50% of the coir fiber produced annually throughout the world is consumed in the countries of origin, mainly India. Together India and Sri Lanka produce 90% of the 250,000 metric tons of coir produced every year.