Australian Cotton Production Falls to 37-Year Low

May 17 (Bloomberg) -- Australian cotton production fell 72 percent to 115 million kilograms in the 2019-20 fiscal year, the lowest level since the 1982-83 fiscal year, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
 

 

Sarah Kiely, director of the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, said, "In FY 2019-20, high temperatures, below-average rainfall and reduced water resources meant many farmers had to change their planting plans to accommodate this. These adverse conditions resulted in a 78 percent drop in cotton production value to $252 million from $1 billion in FY 2018-19."

 

Nationally, the total value of all crops fell 5 percent to $28 billion, and wheat value fell 20 percent to $5 billion.

 

Despite a period of tough conditions for many farmers in the 2019-20 fiscal year, the ongoing drought drove de-banking and the total value of Australian agriculture remained steady at $61 billion.