Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily (Reporter Lu Fengbao) news: In October, the golden autumn, Bachu County, Kashi Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, harvested a bumper crop of cotton across 1.49 million mu (about 99,333.33 hectares) of land, with cotton harvesters shuttle back and forth to pick the cotton.
What will these fluffy cotton balls eventually become? A yarn, a bolt of cloth, a piece of clothing, and even a drop of oil?
To explore the full industrial chain of cotton development from planting, ginning, trading, storage and transportation, spinning and weaving, printing and dyeing, garment processing, oil extraction, to total utilization for profit maximization, the reporter came to Bachu County in Kashi Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, where the largest cotton futures delivery warehouse in southern Xinjiang is located.
Double increase in planting area and output
On October 22, 2024, in the cotton fields of Talaxiaoer Village, in Anakule Township, Bachu County, Kashi Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the white cotton blossoms made an endless "sea of cotton." Two cotton harvesters extended their "arms" to gather the cotton into their "bellies."
Photo taken on October 22, 2024 shows a cotton harvester works in the cotton fields of Talaxiaoer Village in Anakule Township, Bachu County, Kashi Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo by Dilixiat Yusup)
Chen Jingang, a local farmer, stood at the edge of his field, gazing at piles of cotton bales scattered across the cotton fields, his mouth curving into an uncontainable smile. He said, "Half of the 6,000 mu (400 hectares) of cotton have been harvested, and we'll finish harvesting the entire field this month."
Chen Jingang is a farmer with large-scale cotton fields in the area and years of experience in cotton farming. This year, from sowing, fertilizing, and irrigating to harvesting, he chose fully mechanized operations, which not only improved work efficiency but also reduced labor costs and enhanced cotton yield and quality. "The average yield per mu is about 490 kilograms, over 30 kilograms more than last year," he said.
Nearby, Duolaitibage Township is also a scene of abundant harvest. Wumairjiang Aisa, a farmer same as Chen from Ayakekalakule Village in the township, has planted 1,000 mu of cotton. Currently, it's the cotton harvesting season, and one machine can harvest about 300 mu per day. "With such a good harvest this year, I'm sure to earn more money," he said.
Wu Zhifu, member of the Party committee and deputy director of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau of Bachu County, introduced that this year, the county's cotton planting area reached 1.49 million mu (about 99,333.33 hectares), an increase of 160,000 mu (about 10,666.67 hectares) compared to last year. The mechanization rate for cotton planting is 100 percent, and the mechanization rate for harvesting is 91 percent. This year, the cotton growth is quite well, and it is estimated that the average cotton yield per mu will exceed 390 kilograms, an increase of about 15 kilograms compared to last year.
Cotton’s purpose
The harvested cotton now will fulfill its purpose.
Ginning factories are operating at full capacity. Inside the production workshop of Bachu County Hualian Cotton Industry Co., Ltd., machines are roaring. Seed cotton transported from all over the county undergoes multiple processes, such as impurity removal, ginning, and packing, before being transformed into packaged and quality-traceable finished lint cotton. The lint cotton is then sent to the cotton supervision warehouse, where it awaits buyers.
"We have been fully engaged in acquiring seed cotton since the end of September, and the processing volume has exceeded 3,000 tons," said Li Zhaoyan, the person in charge of Bachu County Hualian Cotton Industry Co., Ltd.
There are a total of three cotton supervision warehouses in Bachu County, and the largest cotton futures delivery warehouse in southern Xinjiang of China is also located here.
After purchasing a certain amount of lint cotton, spinning enterprises can directly pick up the goods from the local cotton supervision warehouses.
Entering the spinning workshop of Xinjiang Shibo Cotton Textile Co., Ltd., one can see spinning equipment operating at high speed, processing pristine cotton into slender cotton yarn.
In the loading and unloading area, a forklift loads the packaged cotton yarn products onto trucks. Some of this cotton yarn is sent to various textile enterprises outside China’s Xinjiang, while some is locally consumed as raw materials for upstream processing enterprises.
Photo taken on October 22, 2024 shows a worker loads the packed cotton yarn onto a truck at Xinjiang Shibo Cotton Textile Co., Ltd. in Bachu County, Kashi Prefecture, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo by Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily/Lu Fengbao)
In recent years, Bachu County has leveraged its upstream spinning enterprises in the textile industry chain to attract a number of large-scale textile enterprises to set up in its industrial parks, promoting the rapid development of the county's textile industry.
The cotton yarn enters textile enterprises and is processed into rolls of grey fabric, which are then sent to printing and dyeing enterprises. After printing and dyeing, the fabric acquires the basic conditions for making clothing. Some of these fabrics are transported outside the county, while some are locally processed into clothing, socks, and other products for market sales in Bachu County.
At this point, a fluffy cotton ball in Bachu County has completed the entire industrial chain process of harvesting, ginning, spinning, weaving, printing and dyeing, and garment production.
Currently, Bachu County boasts a complete cotton industry chain, with 35 ginning factories, 14 spinning enterprises, four textile enterprises, one printing and dyeing enterprise, and five apparel and sock manufacturing enterprises throughout the county. These enterprises collectively support the high-quality development of the local cotton industry.
Total utilization of cotton
Do you think the purpose of cotton ends here? Not at all. The humble cotton also makes a big impression in the oil extraction process.
After the ginning process, cotton is separated into lint and cottonseeds. These cottonseeds serve as raw materials for oil processing enterprises, further enhancing the value of cotton.
In Xinjiang Yingutai Oil & Fat Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the Company), a pleasant aroma of oil fills the air. In the stacking area, cottonseeds are piled high. After undergoing processing procedures such as shelling, pre-pressing, extraction, and refining, these cottonseeds ultimately produce refined oil, which is sold to upstream enterprises.
"The annual processing capacity of our enterprise is 170,000 tons. Currently, it's not yet the peak processing period. We'll be busier in December and January next year," said Xiao Xicheng, the manager of the Company. The Company can produce more than 20,000 tons of refined oil annually.
In the oil dispatch area, an edible oil tanker parked under the filling spout was quickly filled with 30 tons of refined oil. This oil will be transported to an edible oil processing factory in northern Xinjiang of China to serve as raw material.
The production of refined oil is not the end of the process. During the processing of cottonseeds, a large amount of cottonseed meal is generated. "We produce 60,000 tons of cottonseed meal a year, which is sold both within and outside China’s Xinjiang, becoming an important feed for livestock farms," said Xiao Xicheng.
Is this the end of the residual purpose of cotton? "Look at those piles of cottonseed hulls; they are also an important product of our company," said Xiao Xicheng. After the shelling process of cottonseeds, a large amount of cottonseed hulls is produced, reaching over 50,000 tons a year. These cottonseed hulls are sold to markets both within and outside China’s Xinjiang, becoming nutrients for mushroom cultivation and one of the feeds for cattle and sheep.
Humble cotton can be transformed into yarn, clothing, oil, and more. It is not only a vivid portrayal of the path to industrial modernization in Bachu County but also a beneficial exploration of the long-term mechanism for the comprehensive revitalization of rural areas in China’s Xinjiang and even throughout China.
(A written permission shall be obtained for reprinting, excerpting, copying and mirroring of the contents published on this website. Unauthorized aforementioned act shall be deemed an infringement, of which the actor shall be held accountable under the law.)