Cotton Procurement Set to Rise on Weak Prices

25-Nov-2025 12:31 PM

Mumbai. Farmers are facing significant difficulties in selling their cotton due to falling wholesale market prices and increased supply. Demand from the industrial and trade sectors is weak, and large quantities of cheap cotton are being imported from abroad, duty-free.

In response to farmers' difficulties, the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI), an agency under the Union Ministry of Textiles, initiated cotton procurement at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) in major producing states, and the pace is now increasing.

The daily volume of government cotton procurement has surpassed 100,000 bales (each bale weighing 170 kg). On November 24th, cotton arrivals in national markets also increased to over 200,000 bales.

The CMD of CCI stated that government cotton procurement at the MSP from farmers has begun in all major producing states except Odisha. Daily procurement is exceeding 100,000 bales, and over 800,000 bales have been procured so far in the current marketing season.

Due to the global cotton price decline and weak domestic demand, cotton prices in most markets have fallen below the MSP.

Consequently, the CCI will have to procure a significant amount of cotton in the current 2025-26 marketing season (October-September). In the 2024-25 season, the Corporation procured approximately 10 million bales of cotton, while the current season's procurement may exceed that.

The minimum support price for long-staple cotton has been set at ₹8,110 per quintal, while the wholesale market price is hovering between ₹6,500 and ₹7,500 per quintal. While there are some issues with cotton quality, prices are still well below expectations.

It is noteworthy that the Corporation has opened approximately 570 procurement centers for cotton procurement, of which 400 have become operational.