When the jute industry started in India, one of the earlier developments was the manufacture of jute sacks. The bulk of jute sack production is used for all types of jute bags. Sacking bags, woven wholly from jute fabrics, are available as plain and twill bags.

Jute bags, the other name for sacking bags are mainly used to pack cement, sugar and other bulky articles, which are packed in weight range from 50 to 100 kgs. These are tailored as per customer's specifications in terms of size and to meet the ever-increasing demand of jute bags in the farm sector, agro-based industries and cement industries.

The Jute Textiles Industry occupies and important place in the national economy. It is one of the major industries in the eastern region, particularly in West Bengal. It supports nearly 4 million farm families, besides providing direct employment to about 2.6 lac industrial workers.

The jute industry is labor-intensive and contributes about Rs.1,200 crores annually to the export earnings. The following table gives the state-wise location of the various composite mills located in India.

Jute, the 'Golden Fiber' as it is called, is a plant that yields a fiber used for sacking and cordage. Known as the raw material for sacks the world over, jute is truly one of the most versatile fibers gifted to man by nature that finds various uses in the form of Handicrafts. Next to cotton, jute is the cheapest and most important of all textile fibers.

Jute is being cultivated in India for centuries. The landmark in the history of jute industry in India dates back to 1854 when the first jute mill as set up by George Auckland at Rishra in Hoogly district of West Bengal. Jute is predominantly a crop of eastern India.

The production process in the jute industry goes through a variety of activities, which include cultivation of raw jute, processing of jute fibers, spinning, weaving, bleaching, dyeing, finishing and marketing of both raw jute and its finished products.

Currently the production of the fibre in India is around 100 lakh bales and about 73 jute mills are operating in the country at present. Besides, there are several small scale industries in the decentralized sector producing handicrafts, decoratives, twines, pulp & paper from jute and allied fibers and particle board from jute stick.

� The capacity to manufacture the widest range of products, tailored to customers' requirements.

� Comprehensive and world class research and development facilities in the area of jute agriculture, product development and machinery design.

� Export history of raw jute and jute manufactures dates back to over 100 years.

� Indian Jute Industry has the capacity to produce and meet the International demand for food grade Jute bags and cloth.

� Food grade Jute Bags and cloth manufactured in India - are a boon in the context of global environmental and ecological concern. Indian food grade jute bags have a twin edged advantage: preservation of food in the most natural way.

Jute is a rainy season crop and hence sown from March to May according to rainfall and type of land, and harvested from June to September depending on whether the sowings are early or late.

Jute thrives best in damp heat, and the climatic conditions prevalent in West Bengal in India are well suited for its cultivation. Indian states ideally suitable for the cultivation of jute are:

Mesta, or Kenif, botanically known as Hibiscus Cannabinus, is also grown in these areas as a textile fiber. Mesta is a coarser, more brittle fiber, and is used by the jute mills in admixture with jute to obtain certain desired properties.

The sizes are custom-fitted according to specifications provided by the customer. However, there are standard sizes already estimated for specific kinds of products -- as there are quantity-requirements that count by the number of sacks.

In high demand today are jute sacks that come in the form of hydrocarbon-free bags -- purposely for agro-based products such as sugar, cocoa, coffee, rice, potato, onions, peanuts, wool and other agricultural products.

This type of jute sack is treated with vegetable oils which are non-toxic and do not contain compounds that could produce off flavors and tastes when in contact with edible materials.

Aside from eliminating the harmful effects of hydrocarbon, the process makes it free from any kerosene smell as well.

� A-Twill - A double warp hemmed twill bag of 112 x 76.5 cm size and weighing 1190 gm with strips woven along the length of the bag and used for packing sugar.

� B-Twill - A double warp hemmed twill bag of 112 x 76.5 cm size and weighing 1020 gm. Capacity to hold 95 kg of food grains. With three blue stripes woven along the bag and used for packing food grain

The strength and durability of jute sacks as well as the safety that the hydrocarbon-free ones offer, makes them truly dependable sacking material worth the purchase of manufacturers and consumers.

Sacking is heavy, loosely woven cloth in plain or twill weave, weighting from 15-20 ozs per yard of different widths. Sacking cloth is used for jute bags to pack food grains, sugar and cement etc. in a weight range from 50 to 100 kg.

Heavy duty jute bags/sacks are very much popular for packaging agriculture commodities.

Since jute harvested in Bangladesh is the strongest in the world, jute bags made in Bangladesh last many years.

The Jute packaging Materials Act (JPMA) was enacted in 1987 and since then it is continuing. Under the current provisions of the JPMA, entire quantities of food grains and sugar have to be compulsorily packed in jute sacks.

Sacking bags, specifically used for the purpose of storing agro-based products, are known as Hydro carbon free bags that have been treated with vegetable oils to destroy the harmful effect of hydrocarbons. Thus sacking bags have great demand not just in the cement industry but also in the agro-based industries.

Safest packaging material for agro-based products, Hydrocarbon free Jute Bags are being increasingly used in place of regular jute bags.

Hydrocarbon free bags are actually Sacking Bags that have been guarded against any contamination of hydrocarbons. Such bags are also free from any kerosene smell and hence are specifically used for packing sugar, coffee, cocoa, rice, potato, onions, peanuts, cotton, wool, etc. These bags are made from jute, treated with vegetable oil.

Hydrocarbon-free food grade bags are totally safe for storing edibles. Eco-friendly and bio-degradable, these bags are safely processed with vegetable oil. Manufacturers and exporters ensure that their bags meet international standards of quality.

The ingredients used as batching oils are non-toxic and approved for use in packaging materials that come in contact with food materials and do not contain compounds that could produce off-flavors or off-tastes in food materials packed in jute bags.

No undesirable odors or odors untypical of jute are present. No unacceptable odor develops after artificial ageing of the bags.

The basic jute products manufactured in jute mills are :
Hessian Cloths, sacking cloths, Jute Yarn, Carpet Backing Cloths (CBC), Bags, Twines, D.W. Tarpaulin/ P.W. canvas, Shopping bags, Geo-textiles and Gaps, Jute Mats and floor coverings, Tobacco sheets, carpets etc.

The fall in the production in 2006-07 over the previous year was due to the strike in the jute mills in West Bengal from January 2007 till March 2007.

Hessian is a single wrap plain weave jute fabric being manufactured in various widths and weigh up to a maximum of 500 g/m.

A jute sack is woven wholly from lower grades of jute fabrics and is usually available as plain and twill. The latter is produced by passing the weft threads over one and under two or more warp threads resulting to a type of textile patterned with diagonal lines. Known in the trade as "heavy goods," jute sack is loosely woven, weighs from 12 to 20 ounces a yard and comes in different widths, depending on the kind of goods intended to be packed. Jute sacks are usually utilized to pack bulky articles weighing 50 to 100 kilograms; more commonly are cement, sugar, wheat and coal.

(April �March)	Hessian	Sacking	CBC	Others	Total
2000-01	269.2	934.8	0.8	229.4	1,435.1
2001-02	243.0	1,021.4	0.9	195.5	1,460.8
2002-03	251.3	954.8	1.9	167.7	1,375.7
2003-04	253.3	910.0	0.3	179.3	1,342.9
2004-05	249.5	996.2	1.1	178.4	1,424.1
2005-06	237.6	974.2	0.7	165.3	1,377.8
2006-07	209.1	854.4	0.5	152.2	1,216.2
2007-08 (Apr/Oct)	149.3	579.2	0.5	101.5	830.5
2007-08 (projected)	240.7	964.7	0.3	162.2	1,367.9