Major cotton production region
7 min readCotton is an important strategic material beneficial for national economy and people’s livelihood and an important raw material for ensuring the sustainable development of cotton industry in China, and matters the sound development national security and leading foreign trade industries. China is the largest cotton producing and raw cotton consuming country in the world. Cotton production not only relates to the national strategic layout of agricultural production and food supply guarantee, but also relates to regional economic and social development, employment and increase of farmers’ incomes. After years of development, China has formed three ma jor cotton production regions which are Yellow River basin, Yangtze River basin and the Xin jiang-based northwest inland cotton production regions. In 2009, both the cotton growing area and total yield of the three major cotton production regions account for more than 98% of the country, and there also develops the trend that within the three ma jor regions, Xin jiang region has gradually been leading the other two regions in an outstanding status as the dominant cotton production region in China.
Under the strong support of the country, through building high-quality cotton production bases, Xin jiang has become an irreplaceable cotton production base with world influence in China, and plays a pivotal role that effectively guaranteed the grain and cotton supply as well as the rapid development of cotton spinning industry, ensured the continuous growth of the rural economy and the income increase of cotton farmers in Xinjiang. As the largest quality cotton production region of China, Xinjiang, after ten years of development, especially the quality cotton bases construction of “the Tenth Five-YearPlan”and”the Eleventh Five-Year Plan”, has increased a lot in cotton production capacity and supply levels, the economic aggregate has increased continuously, raw cotton quality has been lifted comprehensively; coupled with the unique ecological conditions and the world’s leading production technology, Xinjiang has already possessed the scale advantages, industry advantages and competitive advantages for high-quality cotton production. Taking into account of national food supply guarantee, land resources, climatic conditions, pests and comparative effectiveness between grain and cotton production and other factors, China will further promote the planning of advantageous cotton region, and position Xinjiang in the most important advantageous cotton industry belt in China, which further determines the strategic position of cotton production in Xin jiang.
Quality cotton base construction projects in Xin jiang is a key agricultural project in China’s”the Ninth Five-year Plan”,”the Tenth Five-Year Plan”and the “the Eleventh Five-Year Plan”, and also the only key government bond-financed single crop project which hasobtained massive state funding support within the three consecutive five-year plans. Base construction marks the major adjustment of China’s agricultural production mode and further clarifies the strategic position of cotton production of Xin jiang in China. High-quality cotton base construction projects in Xinjiang has very important practical significance and far-reaching historical significance whether in terms of guaranteeing cotton and food supply or in terms of promoting rural economic development, building a new socialist countryside and constantly increasing farmers’ income of Xinjiang.
Through high-quality cotton base construction, at present, cotton production scale of Xin jiang remains at 20 million to 22 million mu with a total production level of about 2.5 million tons, and the average yield of cotton has reached 120 kg/mu,40kg higher than the average of China,50kg higher than the average of U.S., and 67kg higher than the average of the world. Xinjiang has created a world record that the unginned cotton yield permu exceeds 806kg, which means cotton production efficiency has been improved significantly.Xinjiang has an annual cotton processing capacity of 4 million, ranking first among the western provinces of China. More than 80% of cotton produced is sold throughout China every year. Xinjiang has become the largest most potential commodity cotton base in China, directly influencing the supply and demand of China’s cotton market and affecting the international cotton price trends.
With the continuous development of cotton textile industry, China has a growing demand for cotton, which leads to a widening gap of cotton supply, and the surging of import. In 2009, China imported more than 380 million tons of cotton, accounting for 37.4% of China’s demand, and cotton supply was facing serious challenges. The cotton production region of Yangtze River basin and that of the Yellow River basin, the two ma jor grain production regions of China, need to assume more responsibility for grains supply.Therefore, Xin jiang cotton production region plays a significant role in ensuring the cotton supply of China, especially in stabilizing ma jor grains producing area of the interior regions and ensuring food supply in China, Xinjiang has made great contributions to developing China’s cotton textile industry and maintaining international competitiveness.
In 2012, the total cotton output of Xin jiang reached 3.18 million tons, accounting for more than 50% of China’s total cotton output for the first time. As a ma jor cotton producing region of China, the cotton growing area, yield per unit area, total output and provincial dispatch of Xin jiang have all ranked first in China for 20 years consecutively.
Manas County is one of the most realistic beneficiaries of high-quality cotton base construction of Xin jiang, and the farmers’ income of County has been ranking first inXinjiang for 10 years continuously. The rise of high-quality cotton commodity base of Manas County, has attracted the settlements of many leading enterprises such as Aoyang Technology, Xinma Group, Tunhe Oil Group, Fengxiang Cotton Spinning and Tianjie Cotton Spinning, and formed a cotton production chain of lint processing, viscose fiber, spinning, and edible vegetable oil and feed production, etc. Income from cotton industry accounts for more than a half of the per capita income of farmers in Manas County.
In the harvest season each year, piles of towering cotton are like white dreams, built up the enriching “Silver Stooks”for peasants. Speaking of the benefits of high-quality cotton base, farmers of Manas County can speak with a great familiarity: the implementation of cotton project has promoted water-saving irrigation and promotion of fine varieties, on the one hand, costs of water, fertilizer, seed and labor have decreased to varying degrees; on the other hand, the cotton yield and efficient use area of land have increased. Farmers have carefully evaluated that the decrease in costs and increase in efficiency can lead to anaverage annual income increase of 318 yuan per mu of cotton farm. Calculated in the whole county area, the income increase can amount to 22.4 million yuan a year, with the per capita net income of farmers increasedby 240 yuan. Now, Baojiadian Town of Manas County has a cotton growing area of less than 10,000 mu, and nearly half of the growing area has been promoted with water-saving irrigation technology.
Xin jiang quality cotton base construction has been listed as national key agricultural project, and is a ma jor agricultural production structure adjustment made by NationalDevelopment and Reform Commission of China, under the strategy of meeting the national demand for cotton and promoting rural economic development in Xinjiang, in which people sized up the situation and implement the ma jor agricultural development project. Focus on variety optimization projects, efficient water-saving in cotton field, full mechanization, pollution-free plant protection engineering, quality inspection system and technical service system construction, etc, high-quality cotton production base has been established. With increasing overall production capacity and market competitiveness as the core, the organization of high-quality cotton production base continues to strengthen the project management and implement supervision, established and improved the project operation and management mechanism. Through close cooperation and meticulous management, the scientific level of project organization and management has been enhanced, and the quality and efficiency of project construction have been ensured.
Xinjiang, covering 1/6 of the land area of China, has vast territory and abundant resources, magnificent mountains and rivers and boundless expanse. Xin jiang is the famous land of song and dance, land of fruits and land of gold and jades. The place has historical sites all around, quite a number of ethnic groups and unique folks. In this place, glaciers, snow-capped mountains and Gobi deserts coexist, and oasis grassland, lakes andrivers weave together. In this place, magnificent, kaleidoscope high mountains cultivate magical snowy glaciers, peaks drones, waterfalls and exotic animals. In this place, hero tree-Euphrates poplar and wild fiber king-Apocynum grow in the endless sand dunes and deserted desert, the growth of the desolate desert. In this place, there are lush oases full of floral fragrance, rivers flowing for hundreds of kilometers, vast expanse of grasslands, as well as a wide range of original flora and fauna. In this place, there are rich mineral resources deeply buried underground and rich oil and gas resources; in this place, there are thousands of miles of grains and cottons growing on the ground, and flocks of cattle and sheep… The place is our Xin jiang, the beautiful and abundant Xinjiang. As long as you have come to Xin jiang, understood of Xinjiang, and known Xinjiang, you would finally fall in deep love with her…
