The cotton ginning sector has warned of a further decline in cotton cultivation next year, citing a sharp increase in sugarcane prices and extensive incentives being offered by sugar mills to growers.
Chairman Cotton Ginners Forum Ehsan-ul-Haq said that higher sugarcane prices and financial facilities provided by sugar mill owners are encouraging farmers to shift away from cotton, raising serious concerns for the cotton value chain.
He said environmental pollution caused by sugarcane cultivation is also affecting cotton quality, while domestic cotton consumption has become a major challenge despite a significant drop in overall production.
Ehsan-ul-Haq noted that unlike Pakistan, neighbouring India has increased its cotton production target for the 2025–26 cotton year.
He said the lack of implementation of crop zoning laws across Pakistan has led to a continuous increase in sugarcane cultivation in traditional cotton zones over the past several years.
According to the Cotton Ginners Forum chairman, the establishment of new sugar mills has not only caused a record decline in cotton cultivation and overall production but has also damaged cotton quality due to pollution linked to sugarcane farming. As a result, textile exporters have become increasingly dependent on imported cotton.
He said Pakistan’s total cotton production has fallen sharply from 14.8 million bales to just 5.5 million bales. Despite this decline, local cotton ginners are struggling to sell their existing cotton stocks.
Ehsan-ul-Haq added that sugar mill owners provide growers with billions of rupees annually in the form of credit for fertilisers, pesticides and farm machinery. He said sugarcane prices have increased by at least 25 percent this year, reaching Rs500 per 40 kilograms, with reports of further increases.
He warned that these factors could lead to a further expansion of sugarcane cultivation nationwide during the 2026–27 cotton year, deepening the crisis facing Pakistan’s cotton sector..
