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Press release…
Current information obtained by the Farmer Registration System (ÇKS), it is estimated that 590 thousand hectares of cotton have been planted this season…
Accordingly, cotton cultivation areas increased by 14 percent compared to last season (TurkStat 2018 Planted Area data: 518 thousand hectares).
This year, during the cotton sowing period, especially in April, despite adverse weather conditions and the re-planting due to this, climatic conditions were quite favorable.
In the period from October to the present, the heat accumulation values have been at the same levels as the average for many years in all cotton regions.
In the coming period, if there is no abnormal phenomenon in the fight against climate, water supply, diseases and pests, we can say that the yields of the field and the cotton yield will be higher than last season.
Thus, we hope that the goal of producing one MILLION TONS of fiber cotton, which we anticipated last year but could not be realized due to some unexpected problems, will be achieved this year.
However, despite the positive developments on the production side, we see that the increase in costs by 40 percent compared to the previous season causes worries for cotton producers. In addition to this negativity, which is caused entirely by the increase in input prices, the fact that the support premiums announced at the latest in March and the cotton prices on the stock exchanges below the costs increases further the uneasiness in the producers in order to ensure that the producers make their planting preference accurately.
To give an example, today, the cost of kilograms of cotton to 5.00 TL per kilogram, fiber cotton in the market as the equivalent of 12.50 TL should be. However cotton prices occur in the stock exchanges of fiber cotton, even if the buyer finds it difficult to go to TL 10.00!
In addition, the three-year requirement for a supplementary premium has not been removed, despite all objections, to the addition of a cotton crop rotation. We expect that cotton cultivation areas, which have had an upward trend for the last three seasons, will be subject to a significant contraction risk from next year, as the rotation will be implemented in all regions without exception.
In order to compensate for the negative effects of this negative picture caused by cotton producers and our sector and to meet the mentioned risks, we think that it will be beneficial to determine the 2019 product support premiums in the light of these facts and announce them as soon as possible.
Bertan Balçık
National Cotton Council
Chairman of the Board
