World Cotton Day will be held in Söke on October 7-8, 2024 with a broad participation in the Better Cotton Field Trip event. During the two-day field trip attended by farmers and sector representatives, cotton production, ginning, cotton supply chain activities and the Better Cotton Standard System application in Turkey will be observed on site.
While stating that approximately 84 percent of the world's cotton production is carried out by the top ten countries, including Turkey, Aegean Exporters' Association Coordinator President and Aegean Textile and Raw Materials Exporters' Association Chairman Jak Eskinazi said, “Turkey ranks 7th in world cotton production in the 2023/24 season. Our share in the EU market is increasing further especially with organic and sustainable production projects. Production is carried out with good cotton practices in our Söke Plain, which is known as the cotton warehouse of Turkey and for its quality cotton production. Geographical indication registration increases the global market value of the product and the registered product is premium quality/first class. Our Söke cotton, which is also known as “White Gold” with the fineness and durability of the yarns obtained from Söke cotton, its unique features, fiber length, softness, high quality and production processes, has become our 27th geographical indication registered in the European Union. We congratulate all our producers whom are devoted to cotton, especially to Söke Commodity Exchange, and everyone whom has contributed. This registration we have received for our Söke Cotton will create more added value.”
Turkish Cotton Branded with “GMO Free Turkish Cotton”
President Eskinazi, whom underlined that Turkey is one of the single countries that produce GMO-free cotton, announced that the countries in the world that produce GMO-free cotton are composed of Turkey, Greece and Spain.
“In our region, sustainable cotton production such as organic cotton production, better cotton, and regenerative cotton is intensively carried out. We are the second largest producer of organic cotton in the world after India. Another important point is that all of the cotton produced in Turkey is GMO-free cotton. Our brand, registered with the name ‘GMO FREE Turkish Cotton’, is ready for use by the entire sector. ‘GMO FREE Turkish Cotton’ has created a major brand for the Turkish textile sector and provided Turkish cotton production with an important status in the world. We continue our projects related to sustainable cotton production and digital agriculture projects. We bring the sustainability of Turkish cotton to the forefront by collaborating with global initiatives such as the ‘Better Cotton Initiative’.”
Söke cotton, which crossed the borders from the fertile lands of the Aegean Region, marks its name in the history as the first cotton product registered in the European Union.
