Pakistan’s cotton sector is shrinking and the numbers explain why

Dawn reported that Pakistan's cotton sector is contracting, with average national yields now about 14 to 16 maunds an acre, down from 40 to 50 maunds in earlier years. Farmers are switching to rice and sugarcane, which bring in better returns, according to Shahzad Ali Malik, chief executive of Guard Agricultural Research & Services. He said this year's plantings show cotton area sliding under official goals while rice area has grown.

Mr Malik said around 150 ginning factories have closed in the last two or three years as raw cotton supplies dwindled, in an economy where textiles make up roughly 55 to 60 per cent of exports. Independent figures from the International Cotton Advisory Committee's 2025 data book put Pakistan's seed cotton output at about 1.7 tonnes per hectare, compared with 6.6 tonnes in China. Guard Agri says it has tried for almost two decades to secure fresh cotton genetic material, and its commercial import of an approved Bt hybrid remains tied up in regulatory steps.

The Punjab Seed Council approved a higher-yielding Bt hybrid for commercial growing, yet the Department of Plant Protection (DPP) has yet to finalise import conditions, which depend on a Pest Risk Analysis with Ethiopia that remained unsigned more than 15 months after permission was granted. Mr Malik wants the seven-year approval process cut to three years without weakening biosecurity checks.