China Cotton: Stabilize Production and Sales, Set Standards

At present, cotton across the country is entering the growth stage, and the previous “cotton crisis” has quietly faded away. After the turmoil, is Xinjiang cotton okay? Will cotton planting and sales be affected this year? How to fundamentally solve the problem of China’s cotton being controlled by others? Experts said that stabilizing production, improving quality and establishing self-standards are the general direction for the future development of China’s cotton industry.

Xinjiang cotton farmers’ intention to plant cotton grows

In March, the China Cotton Association conducted the fourth national cotton planting intention survey in 2021 among a total of 2,764 designated farmers across the country.

The survey results show that the intended area for cotton planting nationwide is 43.6755 million acres, a year-on-year decrease of 4.99%, a decrease of 2.0232 million acres from the previous survey, and the decline is 4.4 percentage points larger than the previous period. Among them, Xinjiang cotton farmers’ intention to plant cotton increased by 0.61% year-on-year, and the increase was 0.88 percentage points smaller than the previous period.

In this regard, Wang Jianhong, vice president and secretary-general of the China Cotton Association, said in an interview with reporters that in terms of planting area, the country has declined, but Xinjiang has maintained growth. Under the protection of cottontarget price subsidy system, Xinjiang cotton farmers’ enthusiasm and production progress have not been greatly affected.

Data from the China Cotton Association shows that China’s cotton output in 2020 was 5.9237 million tons, of which imports2.35 million tons and exports30,000 tons, with consumption of 8.1 million tons. In recent years, the cotton planting area in Xinjiang has continued to increase and has become the most important cotton producing area in China. In 2020, Xinjiang’s cotton output reached 5.161 million tons, accounting for 87% of the national cotton output.

Not only does the total output rank first in the country, Xinjiang’s cotton yield is also leading, with 137.5 kg/mu in 2020, 10.6% higher than the national average yield. The reporter noticed that in most cotton-producing areas in Xinjiang, the entire process from land preparation, precision sowing, drone spraying to efficient water-saving drip irrigation and cotton harvesting can be mechanized and intelligent. Homework.

Lu Jianchun of the 131st Regiment of the 7th Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps contracted 1,000 acres of land to grow cotton four years ago. This cotton field in Kuitun City, Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture, can bring him an income of 500,000 to 800,000 yuan every year, assuming there are no natural disasters and abnormal weather.

“The state has subsidies, insurance can also share risks, and the income from growing cotton is still good. After the contract expires next year, if the adjusted rent is within an affordable range, I will continue to contract.” Lu Jianchun said that the forecast for 2020 The subsidy has been received and is currently waiting for the liquidation of the subsidy.

Lu Jianchun said that the entire process of sowing, spraying, plowing and picking of cotton fields contracted by him is mechanized. “It used to take two months to manually harvest 1,000 acres of land, but now it can be completed by machine in three days, which is very convenient.”

Data shows that as of the end of February 2021, the machine-picked rate of cotton in Xinjiang has reached 80.07%, of which the autonomous region has reached 71.22% and the Xinjiang Corps has reached 94.93%.

Sales of cotton and products are booming

“Cotton prices have gone up recently.” Liu Yi, director of the processing plant of Bazhou Guoxin Cotton Industry Co., Ltd. in Xinjiang, told reporters that the company has 70,000 to 80,000 acres of cotton fields and an independent ginning factory. Last year, about 16,000 tons of lint were processed. Currently, more than 8,000 tons have been sold and more than 7,000 tons are in stock.

Liu Yi said that the current sales channels are very smooth and he is not worried about sales problems. The main thing is to look at the market conditions. If the price is high, sell it. If it is expected to rise, then let it go.

“Last year, a number of new ginning plants and production lines were opened in Xinjiang, and the supply of seed cotton exceeded demand.” Wang Jianhong said.

Terminal brands also strongly support Xinjiang cotton. Domestic brand Li Ning has always written on the label that it uses Xinjiang cotton – “The fabric is made of high-quality long-staple cotton from Xinjiang, combined with unique weaving techniques to give the fabric excellent performance.”

On the e-commerce platform, Xinjiang cotton and cotton products are also sought after by consumers. Logos such as Xinjiang Direct Delivery and Xinjiang Produced are placed in the most conspicuous positions. Xinjiang quilts and Xinjiang quilt cores are the main categories. According to preliminary statistics, sales of nearly 20 merchants have exceeded 100,000 pieces.

“The quilts are selling well, and we have temporarily added 4 staff members to pack and deliver express products.” Yang Guangyun, store manager of Zhongwang Textile Co., Ltd. in Yuli County, Xinjiang, said that the store’s daily online sales volume is more than 400 orders.

Chinese cotton and cotton products not only supply the domestic market, but also supply the world market. In the first quarter of this year, my country’s exports of textiles and apparel increased by approximately 44% year-on-year.

Production management standard release

Production is in full swing, sellers are going all out, and there is no shortage of orders for Chinese cotton. However, the situation of lack of standards and passive control cannot be ignored.

“In March 2019, when the news came out that the Swiss Better Cotton Development Institute (BCI) had suspended its Xinjiang cotton certification work, we realized that we must establish China’s own sustainable standard system for the cotton industry and cannot be restricted by foreign standards.” Wang Jianhong said ��The China Cotton Association decided to build China’s own sustainable cotton development project and formulate its own sustainable cotton production standards based on the original “China Cotton” quality certification work.

It is understood that there is no universal international cotton production standard in the world, but some countries have their own cotton production standards.

Wang Jianhong introduced that the “China Cotton” sustainable production standard has two biggest differences from other standards: on the one hand, it can improve China’s cotton production level; on the other hand, it can improve the quality of China’s cotton and provide higher-quality raw materials for downstream textile companies.

At present, Xinjiang cotton still has problems such as diverse varieties, unmatched planting management, and excess processing capacity, which have a certain impact on quality. On April 30, the China Cotton Association officially released the “Chinese Cotton” Production Management Standards. The purpose is to jointly create “Chinese Cotton” quality domestic products through standardized management of the production end and with outstanding cotton-related brand companies, so that more people can understand China. cotton.

Wang Jianhong said that the specification itself is part of the “China Cotton” sustainable development project and the part of the “China Cotton” sustainable production management system regarding seed cotton production standards. Next, the association will develop and publish a series of standards and specifications. Through the “China Cotton” sustainable development project, we will establish China’s own cotton production, certification, and brand management systems, improve the level of sustainable cotton production, promote the modern transformation of my country’s cotton industry, and promote the consumption of domestic cotton.

AAA

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