At the heart of early cotton production in the northern Xinjiang, the Mongolian autonomous prefecture of Börtala sees two of its subdivisions – Bole and Jinghe – being among the 34 main cotton producer districts in the Xinjiang. In 2025, the cultivated cotton area in Börtala reached 1.6 million MU (1 MU = 1/15 ha), with a planned yield of 150 kg of fiber per MU and total production exceeding 220,000 tonnes.
The cotton yield, which increased from 200 kg per MU to a stable level exceeding 450 kg, or even 500 kg in perspective, owes this remarkable progression to the mechanized harvest. Praised by farmers for its efficiency and profitability, the mechanical solution releases agricultural labor and significantly reduces production costs. During harvesting, the machines simultaneously achieve collection and compaction, automatically compressing the cotton in balls of about two tonnes. This operation guarantees a recovery rate greater than 95 % and improves both the quality and the efficiency of the harvest.
Dong Xilin, party secretary of the party cell for the village of Xia’rtuore, stresses that national subsidies for precision sowing equipment and harvesting machines have allowed cultivators to save. He added that farmers plan to use these funds to acquire new equipment in order to produce better quality cotton, increase yields and aim for an even more abundant harvest next year.
Text and photos: Yu Jie, editorial member
