Cotton harvest has begun in Iran and so far, 100,000 hectares, that is around 88% of plantations, have been reaped.
Cotton boll production is estimated to reach 300,000 tons this year to register a 20% growth compared with last year, according to the Agriculture Ministry’s “Cotton Project” manager.
“If our estimates come true, close to 90,000 tons of combed cotton will be derived from this year’s yields and 150,000 tons of cottonseeds will be produced as livestock feed,” Ebrahim Hezarjaribi was also quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.
The official noted that harvest is continuing in the provinces of Fars, Isfahan, South Khorasan and Semnan.
According to Hezarjaribi, Iranian farmers supplied 1,600 tons of seeds in the current crop year and the rest were imported.
“Last year, cotton was planted across 97,500 hectares of plantations, but this year land under cultivation of the product has grown by 17% and we managed to increase the yield from each hectare to an average of 2,630 kilograms, up from last year’s 2,500 kg,” he said.
Mohammad Hossein Kaviyani, CEO of Iran Cotton Fund, says there are many reasons for Iranian farmers’ preference to cultivate crops other than cotton.
“For one thing, cotton yields amount to around 2.5 tons per hectare, which is very low compared with products such as potato and vegetables that earn a lot more profits for farmers. Presently, planting other crops such as rice is not only more profitable but much easier. That’s why, over the years, our cotton plantations have turned into paddy fields, or opted for other crops,” he told Mizan Online.
The official noted that in other countries, cotton cultivation is subsidized to encourage farmers to plant cotton, but this is not the case in Iran.
“Cotton harvest machineries are very expensive and currently we don’t have enough of them in the country, which makes harvest very costly and time-consuming,” he said.
“Not long ago, Iran used to export high-quality cotton to over 20 countries, and this was because cotton cultivation was profitable for farmers.”
Kaviyani said some 50 years ago, land under cotton cultivation stood at 180,000 hectares in Golestan Province and 50,000 hectares in Mazandaran Province, adding that these figures have now dropped to 18,000 hectares and 1,000 hectares respectively.
“Domestic demand for cotton is over 180,000 tons per year, while the annual production is 70,000-80,000 tons. This means, at present, we need to import at least 100,000 tons per year,” he said.
