#Raw Materials

2021-11-04

Production is poised for full recovery with a 6% increase expected for 2021/22

To say the 2020/21 season was disappointing for the cotton industry is a major understatement, given the mayhem and confusion that occurred when the Covid-19 virus ground the global supply chain to a halt.

Highlights from the November 2021 Cotton This Month include:

• World production is poised to show a 6% year-over-year increase vs 2020/21

• The surge is being led by three of the world's top five producers: USA, Brazil and Pakistan

• West Africa is poised to post an amazing 48% increase vs the prior season

While it would be naïve to say things are back to normal — only about 3% of people in less-developed countries have been vaccinated, far behind those in richer countries — there are some signs that the recovery is in full swing.

Three of the world’s top five producers (Brazil, Pakistan and the USA) are showing increases in production vs 2020/21 and while that won’t quite bring things back to ‘normal’, it is a sign that the industry’s recovery is still in full swing. Current projections show an increase of 6% in global production in 2021/22 vs the prior season.

Nowhere is that more evident than in West Africa, where all countries are reporting production increases, with the region being up nearly 48% vs the 2020/21 season.

The Secretariat’s current price forecast of the season-average A index for 2021/22 ranges from 87 cents to 126 cents, with a midpoint at 104.26 cents per pound.

Cotton This Month is published at the beginning of the month with the Cotton Update published mid-month. The Cotton Update, which is included in the Cotton This Month subscription, is a mid-month report with updated information on supply/demand estimates and prices. The next Cotton Update will be released on 15 November 2021. The next Cotton This Month will be released on 1 December 2021.

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ICAC to support European Commission on pending PEF legislation

The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) is proud to announce that it has been included as a member of the European Commission’s Technical Advisory Board (TAB) on the Product Environmental Footprint methodology. The Commission developed the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) to assess and communicate the life cycle environmental performance of products and organizations.

ICAC to collaborate with Uzbekistan and Bizpando on regenerative agriculture

The Government of Uzbekistan has allocated 55,000 hectares of land to implement a regenerative agriculture program for cotton as part of a collaborative project with the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) and Bizpando, a company with a a blockchain-based internet platform designed to ensure supply chain compliance.

Textile Exchange publishes cotton Life Cycle Assessment study to strengthen impact data

Textile Exchange has published the first in a series of seven Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies designed to improve the quality and robustness of environmental impact data for raw material production across the fashion, textile, and apparel industry. The first LCA study focuses on cotton and addresses critical data gaps and methodology variability through new high-quality data across key producing countries. The study includes organic, regenerative, recycled, and country averages for conventional cotton production systems, providing a clearer picture of the associated environmental impact.

Fashion for Good mobilises industry to adopt mass balance attribution and accelerate decarbonisation

Fashion for Good launches today the Mass Balance Demonstrator project, a collaborative industry initiative to implement and scale the mass balance attribution (MBA) chain-of-custody model for biomass-attributed PET in textile applications. The project represents a concrete step toward accelerating brand-driven decarbonisation across the apparel value chain.

A Powerful Opening: Global thought leaders launch the International Cotton Conference Bremen

The International Cotton Conference Bremen will open on 25 March 2026 in the Parliament building of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen with a keynote session of exceptional calibre. Distinguished international experts will set the stage for the conference by offering incisive perspectives on the most pressing challenges and the defining trends shaping the future of the global cotton trade. Their insights will span a broad spectrum — from geopolitically driven disruptions affecting global supply chains to the opportunities emerging from innovation-led agriculture capable of supporting a growing world population. Together, these opening keynotes will frame the dialogue of the conference, highlighting both the complexity of today’s market environment and the pathways toward a resilient and forward-looking cotton sector.

Lenzing Group positions bio‑based materials as a strategic asset for Europe’s economic security

The Lenzing Group, a leading supplier of regenerated cellulose fibers for the textile and nonwovens industries, hosted a high‑level roundtable in Brussels to discuss how bio‑based materials can strengthen Europe’s economic security and support the shift toward a fossil‑free future. Organized in cooperation with Euractiv, the event brought together representatives of the European Commission, the UK Mission to the EU, academia, civil society, and industry.

VANDEWIELE Group at Techtextil 2026 – Textile innovations together

The VANDEWIELEGroup will showcase its latest technologies for technical textiles at Techtextil 2026 in Frankfurt from April 21–24 (Hall 12.0, Stand C21). As a global leader in textile machinery, the group brings together specialised brands to support the evolving demands of high-performance textile applications. Visitors will discover solutions in laboratory testing, yarn joining, yarn feeding and thread tension monitoring, designed to create measurable value across the textile value chain.