You won't get pure cotton clothes in future, this is the reason

Everyone likes to wear cotton clothes, anyone can recognizes pure cotton by one touch. But due to climate change, it will be difficult to get pure cotton clothes in the coming times, and even if they, their price will be so high that the common man will not be able to afford them.

Why?

Cultivation of cotton has been badly affected due to extreme weather events such as floods, heatwaves and droughts. Due to low yield, the price of cotton has increased by up to 30 percent.

Due to shortage of cotton, textile mills are forced to mix cotton yarn with other materials like rayon and polyester.

Also Read: Half of all cotton-growing regions face severe climate risk by 2040

Yarn mills in Bhilwara, Rajasthan in India have also explored this option. Through research and development, new fibers are being developed and blended yarns are being made from it. Plants of banana, hemp, ecovera and algae are being used to make yarn. The yarn made from it is mixed with cotton yarn.

Bhilwara's Mixed Cotton Yarn

This blended yarn being made in Bhilwara is now being exported. In countries like Bangladesh, Turkey, this yarn is being used extensively in the fashion industry. Its price is also getting very good. It is being used in clothes, shoes, socks, bed linen etc.

According to RK Jain, General Secretary, Mewara Chamber of Commerce and Industry, he thought of making blended yarn in view of the fluctuating cotton prices, his experiment has been successful.

Four lakh tonnes of yarn is produced in Bhilwara. Out of this two lakh tonnes of yarn is exported. More than 60 countries of the world imports Bhilwara Yarn.

India is the largest cotton producing country in the world. India produces 40 percent of the world's cotton. America, China and Brazil are the major cotton producing countries followed by India. In all these countries, cotton cultivation has been badly affected due to rising temperatures and untimely rains.

According to the USDA, cotton production in Brazil has declined by 30 percent due to drought and heatwave. By August 2022, the yield of cotton in the US has declined by 28 percent.

How is climate change affecting cotton cultivation?

According to the research, temperature is very important for plants responsible for fruit production, photosynthesis and respiration rates which ultimately impacts growth and development of cotton. A hot weather condition causes more evaporation through plant surfaces which leads to extreme water stress in cotton plant.

It is grown in semi-arid and arid environments throughout the world, either as rainfed or through water irrigation systems. Cotton plant requires water mainly at flowering and boll formation stage of plant development. As predicted increasing temperatures is useful for growth of plant only when day temperature does not exceed 32º C. If temperature is increased above optimum level it will cause boll abscission and smaller boll size and ultimately decreased production.

It is important cash crop, produced in more than 100 countries of the world. Climate change is impacting cotton farmers badly.

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