Smaller Cotton harvest in Turkmenistan

WASHINGTON - Jun 15/06 - SNS -- Lint cotton output in Turkmenistan should decrease this year on account of a reduction in plantings, reports the U.S., agricultural attache for the country.

This year's crop should be about 220,000 metric tons (MT) of which 100,000 MT will be consumed domestically and the rest will be exported.

Area will be approximately 650,000 hectares. According to trade sources Turkmenistan still has about 50,000 MT from last years crop. Some was sold this past March when prices were about U.S. $1,000 per ton. Currently prices are $1,200 per ton, which is currently higher than world prices.

Cotton is grown in 50 out of 60 agricultural districts in the country. State orders, a carryover from the Soviet era, remain extremely high. Despite the desire to expand cotton production, land resources are limited.

There is a total of approximately 1 million hectares of arable land in Turkmenistan and any expansion of land under cotton cultivation would come at the expense of other crops including wheat. Between 10% and 15% of the cotton is harvested by machine although the state hopes to increase that number to 30 percent in the coming years.