Kazakhstan is now exporting its cotton varieties to 11 countries — Russia, Belarus, Germany, Latvia, Moldova, China, Belgium, Iran, Ukraine, Italy and Korea, said Askar Nametov, chairman of the board of the National Agrarian Scientific-Educational Centre under the agriculture ministry. In 1991, the nation did not have a single cotton variety of its own.

Out of ten new varieties created, five successfully passed tests, a Kazakh news portal quoted Nametov as saying. Raw cotton yield now is 22-23 centners per hectare, although the potential of new domestic varieties is 38-40 centners per hectare, he said.

The challenge is to raise yield by 30-40 per cent along with improving fibre quality, which will help increase the produce’s competitiveness in domestic and international markets, he said.

About a quarter of the Kazakh population is employed in the agriculture sector. Family farms own nearly 70 per cent of land in southern and south-eastern parts of the country and account for 95 per cent of the total cotton production.

Despite being significantly larger in area than its Central Asian neighbours, the country’s cotton production is relatively lower due to the significance of grain cultivation and other food crops. (DS)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

Disclaimer - All News/Articles items are subject to copyright and no article either in full or part may be reproduced in any form without permission from Fibre2Fashion Pvt. Ltd.