KARACHI: The Pakistan Wool and Hair Exporters Association has urged the government to restore testing facility of agriculture and livestock products marketing department so that exports of wool and hair could be increased.

The association chairman Amanullah Farouk said the government dissolved the department and the functions of grading were assigned to the ministry of commerce.

The decision was taken by cabinet division and the functions of grading, testing and issuance of certificate of quality were suspended with effect from July 1, 2011.

He said the department was providing grading and testing services to the exporters of wool and hairfor over three decades

and without the test certificates the export consignments are not accepted by international buyers of these products.

The buyers in UK, Belgium, France, Turkey, India and China require proper certification of yield content, fiber diameter in microns, length, vegetable matter and residual grease content etc. present in the wool.

These are the basic components to evaluate quality of deliveries being exported, and Pakistan Wool Test House was the only department capable of conducting these physical, chemical and microbiological tests under the supervision of highly trained staff with most sophisticated equipment imported from abroad.

Grading activities carried out by this department are unique and these services are not provided by any other government organisation.

Amanullah said that export of wool without proper certification would lead to the export of inferior quality products bringing bad name to the country.

He said the exporters had approached the ministry of commerce for the restoration of certification services but to no avail.

The annual export of wool and hair is worth $15 million and if the testing facilities are not restored by the government it will result in loss of foreign exchange.