'Not at a crisis level yet': BWF opens up on shuttlecock shortage, pushes for synthetic solution

New Delhi: Badminton World Federation (BWF) Secretary-General Thomas Lund said the ongoing shuttlecock shortage has not yet reached a “crisis level”, but stressed that manufacturers must resolve supply chain issues and accelerate the roll-out of advanced synthetic options for players worldwide.

Prices of imported feather shuttles have more than doubled in the past year due to raw material crunch in China. A recent report in French newspaper L’Equipe attributed the shortage to changing food habits in China, with preference shifting to pork over duck and goose meat and a global rise in badminton’s popularity.

“We are aware of the global supply chain challenges and subsequent increases in feathered shuttlecock prices impacting badminton communities around the world,” Lund said in an email interview to PTI.

“And while we are naturally concerned by this barrier, in our dialogue with the large-scale manufacturers and their assessment of the situation, we don’t believe this is at a crisis level yet,” he added.

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The shortage has already prompted India’s top stakeholders to admit that the sport can no longer depend solely on goose and duck feathers, with national chief coach Pullela Gopichand sounding the alarm.

BWF reiterated its long-term commitment to synthetics but said the onus was on manufacturers to sort out the supply chain issue.

“The Badminton World Federation (BWF) is 100 percent committed to investing in and developing synthetic shuttlecocks for future sustainability of the sport and to ensure long-term accessibility for continued generations of players. We have been committed to this project for over the last 10 years,” Lund said.

“….in saying this, BWF is not a shuttlecock manufacturer itself, and therefore the onus must still be on the shuttlecock producers to address these supply chain challenges and to also fast-track more advanced synthetic options,” he said.

To address sustainability and supply concerns, BWF has been experimenting with synthetic shuttlecocks for quite some time.

“Our testing and trialling programmes for production and introduction of competition and social use synthetic shuttlecocks in collaboration with the manufacturers remains in place and is firmly part of our sustainability strategies for the future,” Lund said.

“This is an ongoing process … several manufacturers have already gone to market with their social use synthetic shuttlecocks, and the products have been well received. More work is being done by the BWF and manufacturers on competition-approved shuttlecocks.

“Collectively we continue to use the qualitative and quantitative feedback from previous competition testing windows to guide the process in making the necessary improvements to all future synthetic shuttlecock production.” Lund assured that the world body is closely monitoring the situation.

“We remain in regular contact with top global manufacturers and will continue to update the Member Associations and the badminton community on any new breakthroughs.”