In the last 10 years, Turkey displayed a profile of a continuous decline in the amount of cotton production. The country that produced 964 thousand tons of cotton in 2002-3, reached the most critical level in 2009-10 with 381 thousand tons. The country that produced 457 thousand tons of cotton in 2010-11, expects to reach an amount of 675 thousand tons in 2011-12. Nevertheless, Turkey has become a great market for the imported cotton due to its inability to meet the domestic cotton consumption (around 1,5-1,7 million tons) with the amount of cotton it produces. With the fluctiations in the global market and in the exchange rates, the environmental and climatic changes and the discussions on GMO and natural cotton, the long-term predictions about the cotton prices are no longer as clear as they used to be. Barış Kocagöz, President of the National Cotton Council, which has been recently conducting remarkable studies on GMO free cotton production, shared his assessments of the cotton sector with Textil Dünyası.
Kocagöz stated that the exact figures on cotton yield in 2011 have not been obtained yet, however that the increase observed in planting areas will affect the production. “We expect that a 45 percent increase will take place in production in parallel with the 40 percent increase – compared to the previous year- in the planting areas in the Aegean Region and 50 percent increase in the East Anatolia Region,” said Kocagöz. Stating that a full capacity is being used in production, Kocagöz added; “Due to the cotton production costs and price balances, corn and sunflowers are planted as alternative crops in the regions other than the Aegean Region. In theory, we haven’t able to reach the figures recorded 9 years ago, considering the fact that in 2002, we produced 200.000 tons more products than the amount we produced this year.”
The Planting Areas are on Increase in South Eastern Region
Kocagöz argued that there was a greater proportional increase in cultivated areas in the Aegean Region in 2011 however that that was the whole potential the region had. Kocagöz emphasized that the cotton cultivation areas in the Aegean Region are used for other production processes. Kocagmz continued by saying; “The regions which abondoned cotton production to continue with three cultivation in the previous years can no longer perform cotton production. For that reason the amount of the cultivation areas in the Aegean Region can not be more than the amount of the areas already cultivated this year. The situation is different in the South Eastern Region. The number of the new areas opened to irrigated agriculture increases each year. Because cotton can be planted on a portion of these areas, there is still a possibility of an increase in the amount of the planting areas. If everything had gone well, it would be possible to produce 1,500,000 tons of cotton, which is enough to meet the demand, within 2-3 years. However it does not seem possible considering the current price-cost parity. I think that the production may increase only if the government takes new measures in favor of cotton.”
Importation Continues, Exportation Begins
Reminding that 889 thousand tons of cotton production, which worth USD 1,720 million, was performed in 2010, Kocagöz stated that 532 thousand tons of cotton that worth USD 1,662 million had been produced by October 2011. Kocagöz stated that the exact figures regarding the whole 2011 have not been clear yet. He added that due to the fact that the prices of foreign contracts, received previously, have recently been at high levels, there is an increase in the number of the canceled contracts. Kocagöz remarked that because are not self-sufficient in the field of cotton, we can not perform a significant amount of exports however that for the Turkish cotton prices have declined below the prices accross the world, exports have started to be carried out in some regions.
Kocagöz stated that the cotton manufacturers in Turkey are given support premiums, which are nevertheless insufficient. Kocagöz added that the production costs are too high compared to the other countries. Kocagöz continued by saying; “A 25-30 percent of higher cost, which stems from the high prices of the inputs such as fuel and fertilizers, decreases the chance for the Turkish manufacturers to compete with the cotton, imported duty-free from the foreign countries. Regional support will start to be given by the Basin Support Model. The basins have been determined but the mechanism will operate once the support for these basins is increased.” Kocagöz said that a positive effect will be created as the Turkish textile companies enter the cotton production process and such a process will help the conscious production to increase and the industrialist using cotton to understand the problems within the production process.
Mechanization is Indispensable in Cotton Harvesting
Emphasizing that mechanization is indispensable for Turkey in cotton harvesting, Kocagöz stated that the labour cost in the process of harvesting have increased rapidly in the last 10 years and consequently it has become impossible to perform cotton farming through the cotton pickers. “Picking cotton via machines, provides each individual with 20 kuruş per a kilo of cotton,” said Kocagöz and added that there is a lack of workers due to the increasing standards in this field.
Emphasizing that as mechanization becomes dominates the harvesting processes, the quality and the standards of the products produced in different regions become more similar, Kocagöz stated that it is very important to perform the machine-harvesting and to process the harvested products in the right way, which directly affects quality. “In this regard, the Ministry of Economy tries to standardize the ginneries and to apply the Single Bale system. The new licensed warehouse system in cotton will start to operate in Aegean Region in the following season. The bales are planned to be separated one by one according to the quality standards. By this way the high quality products will be sold at a better price and they will become more available,” said Kocagöz.
Kocagöz stated that there will surely be producers who will abondon cotton production in 2012 as a result of the current cotton prices and the low levels of the world market. Kocagöz added that there will be a considerable decline in the amount of the cultivated lands in the Aegean Region but with the new irrigable fields in the South Eastern Anatolia Region, the decline will be felt more slightly. Kocagöz underlined that it is early to give exact figures for 2012 and it is necessary to wait for the planting trends in March.
Turkey is the Producer of a Hundred Percent GMO free Cotton
Barış Kocagöz remarked that the most important cotton manufacturers in the global market stand out with production of GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) cotton and that the production of GMO free cotton has a share of only 15 percent in the world. Kocagöz underlined that as the entrance of GMO cotton seeds to the country is prohibited, Turkey is one of the few countries that performs a hundred percent GMO free cotton production.
Kocagöz emphasized that GMO free production is an exclusiveness and added; “The Turkish textile industry should benefit from such an exclusiveness and create a brand out of it. In line with this purpose, we took the first step last year and with the ‘GMO FREE Turkish Cotton’ Project, we completed the label and control certifications of the all products from cotton bales and to the final textile product. As the final product, the first GMO-free trousers have been put on the market. Especially in Europe, these is a market and a consumer group, sensitive about using GMO free products. It is in our power to utilize this market and consumers.
Man Made Fibers Stand Out
Stating that man made fibers are used more extensively accorss the world every year, Kocagöz said that this increase will not fall below zero even if it loses speed. Kocagöz continued by saying; It is supposed that the 51 percent of the fiber consumed across the world consists of man made fibers and 49 percent of it consists of cotton fiber. The share of the man made fibers is expected to reach 60 percent by 2015. However in the recent years, there has been a price competition in favor of cotton as it has been accepted that cotton fiber appeals to segment products of higher quality. Although the high prices observed in the cotton sector in 2011 have caused a braking effect, it can not be said to be a great one. I think that in parallel with the increase in the standards of the world’s population, the rates of this shares will change in favor of the cotton.”
