AgroPages-Cotton acreage in Brazil could double over next four years-Agricultural news

Good cotton prices and a high demand for cotton from China is expected to encourage Brazilian farmers to continue increasing their cotton acreage for the next few years.

In fact, the executive secretary of the Brazilian Association of Cotton Producers (Abrapa) is forecasting that the cotton acreage in Brazil will double over the next four years. By the 2022/23 growing season, Abrapa is forecasting that farmers in Brazil will plant 2 million hectares of cotton.

For the growing season just ending, Brazilians planted 1.1 million hectares of cotton and Abrapa is projecting that 1.4 million hectares of cotton will be planted in 2018/19. The cotton acreage in Brazil increased 26% in 2017/18 and it is projected to increase 11% in 2018/19.

The state of Mato Grosso is the largest cotton producing state in Brazil followed by Bahia. In Mato Grosso, the vast majority of cotton is planted as a second crop following soybeans and it competes with second crop corn for acreage. In Bahia, cotton is planted as a single crop and it generally competes with soybeans for acreage.

Brazil is poised to surpass India next year as the second largest cotton exporter in the world after the United States.