Production of raw cotton in Brazil is expected to increase by 22.3 percent to 28.3 percent as a direct result of high prices of the crop in the international market and the rise in exchange rates, as per the estimates released by the National Supply Company of Brazil (CONAB).

According to CONABΆs estimates the cotton production in the country is expected to reach 1.67 million tons during the 2013-14 harvest season, as against the 1.3 million tons of raw cotton obtained in the 2012-13 harvest period.

The area planted for harvesting cotton in the country is also expected to rise from 16.8 percent to 22.5 percent in 2013-14. The area to be harvested for cotton would be approximately 1.04 million to 1.09 million hectares.

According to the agency, the highest increase in acreage for planting cotton would be in the Midwest, specifically in the Mato Grosso and Goias region, where the acreage is expected to increase by 23 percent and 25 percent, respectively.

The area for harvesting cotton is also expected to rise in the Western Bahia region, one of the major cotton producing regions located in the eastern part of the country, where, according to CONABΆs estimates, the acreage would increase by 15 to 20 percent, compared to the harvest period of 2012-13.

Cotton production totaled 1.3 million tons for the harvest period of 2012-13, which was 31.8 percent lower than the 2011-12 harvest period. The area planted for cotton during the period was 894,000 hectares which was 35.9 percent less compared to 2011-12 season. However, cotton yield during 2012-13 was 1,444 kilos per hectare, which was an increase of 6.3 percent year-on-year.