Top 10 Largest Cotton Textile Industry in World – [Cotton Types]

The word cotton comes from the Arabic word “al-qutn” and is a member of the Malvaceae family of flowering plants that includes hibiscus, Pavonia, and mallow plants. It is a white fibrous agricultural product; it’s an example of a primary economic activity that has a wide variety of uses, from textile production to creating paper, to producing oil and food products. It is grown all around the globe and is traded internationally as well the international cotton trade is led by the United States and the African nations and totals more than $12 billion annually.

There are many types of industries in the world but the Cottage industry is very famous at the local and international levels. The cottage industry is an industry, mainly manufacturing, which involves many producers working part-time from their homes. The term was initially used to refer to workers who were engaged in tasks like lace-making, sewing, or household manufacturing.

Cotton Cultivation

The cultivation appears to have begun in present-day Pakistan approximately 6,000 years ago. The Harappa civilization of the Indus River Valley exported cotton fabrics to the early Semitic peoples of the Middle East as well as the Egyptians starting around 3000 B.C.E.; from there, made its way into Nubia, Meroe, and the interior of Africa.

Similar cultivation took place in America independently, albeit later: the ancient Peruvian Moche and Nazca civilizations, which flourished as Rome was declining in Europe, made extensive use of cotton fabric.

Factors for Cotton Textile Industry Development

These Physical and Socio-Economic factors are responsible for the location and development. The initial factors such as:

• Raw material
• Climate
• Energy resources
• Water availability
• Geography
• Availability of Market 6: Location Factor
• Sufficient amount of Capital
• Skill Labor Force
• Government Patronage
• Government Policy for Industrial Development
• Means of Transportation
• Industrial Solid Waste Management

Types of Cotton

More specifically, cotton is classified with a genus of tropical and subtropical shrubs known as Gossypium.

There are four commercial species of cotton, the most common are:

• Gossypium Hirsutum, (A variety native to Mesoamerica, Mexico, Florida, and the Caribbean)
• Arboreum or “tree cotton,” (Grows in India and Pakistan)
• Barbadebse or “Creole,” or “Egyptian” cotton, (A South American variety)
• Herbaceum or “Levantine” cotton (Native to southern Africa and the Middle East)

Top 10 Cotton Textile Industries in the World

Although the cotton textile industry is widespread, only 40 countries manufacture it at a large scale and export it to the international market. Following are the top ten cotton-producing countries along with their total cotton production in 2022.

China

Textile manufacturing is one of the oldest cottage industries in China. Industrial development took place after the Communist Revolution in 1949. Now large enterprises are the backbone of the Chinese cotton textile industry.

The cotton textile industry is spread over 18 provinces. Shanghai, Manchuria, Tienshan, Beijing, Chuang, Nanchang, and Lanchow are major cotton textile manufacturing centers. Honanfu and Wushan are other important areas in the southern Hwangho River valley. The Yangtze River valley, Tienshan, Shantung, Shanghai, and Kaifeng rectangle manufacture more than 55% of cotton textiles in China.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in China

Here is a list of the top 10 textile companies in China:

• Waste2Wear
• FUJIAN BAILONG LACE MANUFACTURE CO., LTD
• JINJIANG SANJING WEAVING CO., LTD
• SHAOXING GLOBAL CHEMICAL FIBER CO., LTD
• Hangzhou Saint Glory Home Textile Co., Ltd
• StockOn
• GYJ Textile Co., Ltd.
• KDC Textile Co. Ltd
• Microfiber Cleaning -Korean Materials Co. Limited
• Sample King

India

The cotton textile industry in India was most firmly rooted before the modern machine industry beginning in 1818 at Fort Gloster near Calcutta but the real success was the first mill established at Bombay in 1851. The Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, and Karnataka states are major contributors to cotton textiles; Solapur, Mumbai, Poona, Nagpur, Jalgaon, Broach, Baroda, Bhavnagar, Surat Cambay, Coimbatore, Kanpur, and Amritsar are major cities in cotton textile manufacturing. Maharashtra and Gujrat states are equipped with 104 textile mills and contribute 40% of output.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in India

These are the top ten cotton textile industries in India:

• Arvind Ltd.
• Vardhman Textiles Ltd.
• Welspun India Ltd.
• Raymond Ltd.
• Trident Group
• K P R Mill Ltd.
• Page Industries Ltd.
• Nitin Spinners Ltd.
• Rupa & Company Ltd.
• Himatsingka Seide Ltd.

United States of America

The textile Industry in the US is one of the front-runners among manufacturing countries. The first cotton textile mill was established in Rhode Island in 1790. In the New England States, the industry is concentrated in the states of Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Providence, Woonsocket, New Bedford, Fall River, Taunton, Beverly, Lowell, and Manchester. The belt of plains and hills between the Appalachian Mountains and the Atlantic possesses 85% cotton spindles and produces 75% of the U.S.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in the United States of America

Following are the top ten cotton textile companies in the United States:

• American Bag Corp.
• Bayeux Fabrics
• CMI Industries, Inc.
• Desmon Mills
• Fabrictex
• Guilford Mills Inc.
• Interface Interior Fabrics
• Kent Manufacturing Co.
• Master Knits
• L. W. Packard and Company, Inc.

Brazil

The cotton textile industry in Brazil began in 1860 in Bahia and the cotton-growing region. Abundant raw materials, a large domestic market, and cheap hydel powder have boasted in Brazil. Porto Alegre, Belem, Fortaleza, Joao Pessoa, Recite, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, and Sao Paulo are important cotton textile manufacturing centers. 92% of the total cotton in Brazil is produced in the dryland areas.

Brazil has improved its cotton textile industry by introducing cutting-edge technology, improving growing techniques, and hiring professional farmers. Their cotton production doubled over the years, it was almost 1.3 million tons in 2015/2016 and in 2020/2021 it increased to 2.7 million tons.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in Brazil

Following is the list of some major textile companies in Brazil:

• Evora SA.
• Fabricato SA.
• H and M Hennes and Mauritz GBC AB.
• Hyosung Corp.
• Merrow Sewing Machine Co.
• Pettenati Industria Textil SA.
• Santana Textiles Group.
• Santista Argentina SA.

Pakistan

The cotton textile industry in Pakistan could be termed the ‘backbone’ of Pakistan’s economy. It is the largest and greatest source of foreign exchange earnings. The spinning sector is one of the most important sectors. After independence, the first Valika Cotton Textile Mill was established in Karachi in 1948.

Karachi is now the center of industry, while Hyderabad, Faisalabad, Lahore, Peshawar, Sheikhpura, Rahim Yar Khan, Multan, Okara, Khairpur, Jhang, and Gujranwala are other cotton textile manufacturing centers. It is composed of more than 444 textile mills and with an installed capacity of 146 thousand rotors and 8.6 million spindles.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in Pakistan

The top cotton textile companies in Pakistan include:

• Fateh Textile Mills
• Chenab Limited
• Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Limited
• Husein Industries Limited
• Kohinoor Mills Limited
• Nishat Mills Limited
• Fazal Cloth Mills Limited
• National Silk and Rayon Mills Limited
• Safa Textile Limited
• The Crescent Textile Mills Limited

Uzbekistan

In Uzbekistan, cotton is also known as ”white gold.” It comes in the 6^th position of largest cotton producers in the world. Most of the cotton farms are located on the outskirts of Aydar Lake, Tashkent, and along the Syr and Amu Darya. In 2010 and 2011, the area under cotton production constituted almost 1.3 million hectares. Uzbekistan ranks at 82^nd position in the world’s largest economy list, hence cotton production is crucial for them. It is a cash crop of the country and accounted for 17% of the exports in 2006. It mainly exports cotton to China, Russia, Korea, and Bangladesh.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in Uzbekistan

Here is a list of ten textile companies in Uzbekistan:

• Uz Cotton Group
• Daka-Tex
• Global Textile
• BCT
• Classtex
• Gurlan Global
• Alliance Textile
• Indorama
• Posco International Textile
• Uztex Group

Turkey

Turkey is the 7^th largest cotton producer with a record of producing 631,000 tons in 2022. The main production areas include Çukurova, Aegean Region, and south-eastern Anatolia. The ideal time to plant cotton in Turkey is from April to June and it is harvested from September to November. Turkish cotton is of high quality as it has a crystalline structure, rigid cellulose chains, and is highly fibrillar. The cotton production was 55,000 MT in 1925-1930. Since then, it has increased a lot, from 2011 to 2015, it has been increased to up to 854,000 MT. The consumption is greater than the production so it imports some cotton from Azerbaijan, Greece, Uzbekistan, and Brazil.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in Turkey

These are ten major textile companies in Turkey:

• Hermes Textile
• Nesic Textile Narrow Woven Industry Inc
• Ozkok Workwear & Promotional Textile
• Ilk-on Textile
• Alpino Textile
• Hunter Textiles Ltd.
• Pelini Home Textile
• Ozra Textile Company
• Merem Textile
• Anatolia Textile Ltd.

Australia

Australia is the 8^th largest cotton producer with over 1500 cotton farms all over the country. The main production areas are located in the Northern Territory, central and southern Queensland, northern Western Australia, northern, central, and southern NSW, small areas of northern Queensland, and northern Victoria. 66% of the cotton is grown in NSW and the rest 33% is grown in Queensland. Most of the cotton farms in Australia are owned by families. On average, 500 million people are clothed by the cotton produced in Australia. It mainly exports cotton to Bangladesh, Thailand, and India. In 2021, the country earned 1.42 billion dollars from cotton exports.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in Australia

Here is a list of famous cotton textile companies in Australia:

• SofiTex Trade Co., Ltd
• DEFAB WEAVERS PTY.LTD
• Hefeng Textile Co. Ltd
• M&S Textiles Australia
• Greatorex Textile Industries
• Bruck Textiles
• Simba Textile Mills
• Australian Textile Mills
• Digital Fabrics
• Kennard & Kennard

Benin

It is the fourth largest cotton producer in Africa with approximately 80% of the export earnings and 40% of the GDP, it is considered a major cash crop. Most of the cotton production occurs in the South-Central and Northern regions of the country. The majority of the farmers own two hectares of farmland for growing cotton. The farmers of Benin prefer to use natural fertilizers instead of pesticides. 30% of the workforce of the textile industry is in the cotton department. In 2021, Benin produced 728,000 tons of raw cotton, breaking all previous records for cotton production. The cotton textile industry plays an important role in the country’s exports and income.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in Benin

Some cotton textile companies in Benin are:

• Jozadak Int’l. Corp.
• SIGMA COMMERCIAL LTD
• STE TAYLOROSE IMPEX LTD
• Mark-vision International
• Ste Interfund

Greece

Greece is the second largest cotton producer in Europe and 10^th largest in the world. With 45,000 farmers and 270,000 hectares of land, cotton is produced on 10% of the total agricultural land in Greece. The main focus of cotton farmers in Greece is to manage water and pesticides. Greece cotton is recognized for its high quality with long length and great strength. The major cotton-producing sites in Greece are Thrace, Thessaly, Mainland Greece, and Macedonia. Depending on the variety and weather conditions, the life cycle of the cotton crop is 170 to 210 days, and is planted from March to April.

List of Cotton Textile Companies in Greece

The major cotton textile companies in Greece include:

• Stavrinos Bros S.A.
• Davaris Textiles S.A.
• Fibralco S.A.
• Selected Textiles S.A.
• Joseph Taraboulous Textiles
• Varvaressos S.A.

Largest Cotton Producing Countries and Their Exports and Imports

According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity, the top ten cotton-producing countries with their exports and imports as of 2021 are mentioned below.

Other Countries of the World Producing Cotton

Apart from these ten countries, there are several countries in the world with textile industries that produce huge amounts of cotton, these countries are mentioned here along with their cotton production.

Conclusion

Textile industries are incomplete without cotton, it is a white fibrous product obtained from plants that are used in making clothes, paper, and some food products. The textile industry contributes a great deal to the economic conditions of any country. Almost every country now produces cotton and has several cotton textile industries. However, the top ten countries with the largest cotton textile industries include China, India, the United States, Brazil, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Australia, Benin, and Greece.

Lisa C. Townes

Lisa is a passionate travelers. She spends 3 months every year visiting different places worldwide. She has visited almost every famous place in the world. She herself is an affiliate blogger