Low price fears force growers to shun cotton for ‘profitable’ crops

LAHORE: Disillusioned by low prices for their crop and the lack of government support, cotton growers have shifted to alternative crops, resulting in lower cultivation area and yield.

The difference in cultivation data from last year and this year’s Kharif season is the most stark in ‘Punjab’s cotton valley’ comprising Bahawalpur, Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan divisions.

Data from the Punjab Crop Reporting Service (CRS) show that white lint could not achieve its sowing target of four...