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Even though cotton is grown in South Africa, most is exported for processing and manufactured into clothing items, before being imported again As apparel retailers and brands scramble to try to disentangle their cotton supply chains from possible links to forced labour abuses in Xinjiang province, China is likely to be looking for alternative markets for its fibres – presenting new challenges for countries like South Africa. Allegations that ethnic minority labourers in the Xinjiang region in China – which produces 85% of the country's and 20% of the world's cotton – are forced to pick ...

SA's cotton value chain could be losing about R20.4 billion in opportunity cost, claims agtech CEO Share South Africa's cotton production has grown by almost 800% since 2013. The country does not have the spinning capacity to convert the lint into yarn. This meant 84% of last year's lint cotton had to be exported. Most of South Africa's lint cotton (about 84%) is exported for processing and then the final product is imported again, leading to an estimated opportunity loss for the local industry of about R20.4 billion along the beneficiation value chain. This is acc...