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Definition of Cashmere
The Cashmere and Camel Hair Manufacturers Institute defines cashmere as:
- The fine (dehaired) undercoat fibers produced by a Cashmere goat (Capra hircus laniger).
- The fiber is generally non-medullated and has a mean maximum diameter of 19 microns. The co-efficient of variation around the mean shall not exceed 24%. There can be no more than 3% (by weight) of cashmere fibers over 30 microns. (Reference IWTO Test Method 8).
The U.S. Wool Products Labeling Act of 1939, as amended, (U.S.C. 15 Section 68b(a)(6)) defines cashere as:
(A) the fine (dehaired) undercoat fibers produced by a cashmere goat (capra hircus laniger);
(B) the average diameter of the fiber of such wool product not exceeding 19 microns; and
(C) containing not more than 3 percent (by weight) of cashmere fibers with average diameters that exceed 30 microns. The average fiber diameter may be subject to a coefficient of variation around the mean that shall not exceed 24 percent.