China’s cotton production is expected to decline one year after the US’ Xinjiang embargo as attention turns to food security and quality

The Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region of China is forecast to produce 5.57 million tons less cotton in 2023 than it did in 2018, for cotton production.

It is anticipated that the cotton output in China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region will decline by 5.57 million tons in 2023 compared to 2018. (Photo: Bloomberg)

China is emphasizing cotton production with cotton quality above quantity

In response to concerns about food security, China is increasingly emphasizing cotton quality above quantity while simultaneously making space for crops.

In an article from SCMP, China has decreased cotton production in its Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region one year after a US import ban went into effect, and a major decline in output is anticipated this year as a result of quality and food security initiatives.

According to analysts and farmers, China, which contributes over 20% of the world’s cotton, primarily from the western region of Xinjiang, may see a decline in cotton production of more than 10% as it prioritizes quality over quantity and clears space for crops.

The region’s products are being sent to nations that are a part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative as a result of a boycott sponsored by the US due to allegations of forced labor. Climate shocks during the previous few months are also thought to have contributed to decreased yields in the region. The accusations have always been refuted by Beijing.

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Experts: Forced labor in the cotton industry in the Xinjiang region will be more difficult to eradicate

Considering China’s economic might and political objectives, a respected expert predicts that forced labor in the cotton industry in the Xinjiang region will be more difficult to eradicate than it was in Uzbekistan.

In a report from France 24, the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation’s director of China studies, Adrian Zenz, has just released the first study on forced labor in Xinjiang’s cotton crop to be published in a peer-reviewed academic journal.

It also contains brand-new internal government documents, according to Zenz, that indicate senior Uyghur Muslims over the age of 60—and some as old as 77—who were deemed “lazy” were forced to pick cotton in the fields.

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