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Ranked: The World’s Top Cotton Producers
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Cotton is present in our everyday life, from clothes to coffee strainers, and more recently in masks to control the spread of COVID-19.
As the most-used natural fiber, cotton has become the most important non-food agricultural product. Currently, approximately half of all textiles require cotton fibers.
The above infographic lists the world’s top cotton producers, using data from the United States Department of Agriculture.
Fancy Fabric
Originating from the Arabic word “quton,” meaning fancy fabric, cotton is a staple fiber made up of short fibers twisted together to form yarn.
The earliest production of cotton was around 5,000 B.C. in India, and today, around 25 million tons of cotton are produced each year.
Currently, five countries make up around 75% of global cotton production, with China being the world’s biggest producer. The country is responsible for over 23% of global production, with approximately 89 million cotton farmers and part-time workers. Cotton’s importance cannot be understated, as it is the primary input for the Chinese textile industry along with many other nations’ textile industries.
| Top Cotton Producers | 2020/2021 (metric tons) | 2021/2022 (metric tons) |
|---|---|---|
 China | 6,445,000 | 5,835,000 |
 India | 6,009,000 | 5,334,000 |
 United States | 3,181,000 | 3,815,000 |
 Brazil | 2,356,000 | 2,504,000 |
 Australia | 610,000 | 1,252,000 |
 Pakistan | 980,000 | 1,306,000 |
 Turkey | 631,000 | 827,000 |
 Other | (Read more...) |