Improved varieties

At the laboratory of a seed company in Awat, Zhang Yuping was busy testing a new variety of cotton seeds developed for mechanized harvesting.

"The cotton farming mechanization process starts at the very beginning, namely with the development of seeds. Cotton grown from those seeds can reach just the right height, making it convenient for the machinery to pick," she said.

"You can see farmers use cotton seeds developed by different companies during sowing season. The competition is fierce, but it's good for Xinjiang's cotton industry."

Through the wide uptake of large machines and by leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence-assisted breeding, biotechnology-based breeding and gene editing, agronomists and scientists are continuously developing and selecting more high-quality cotton seed varieties suitable for mechanical harvesting, Zhang said.

She added that the challenges posed by traditional cotton varieties in mechanical harvesting include poor adaptability, fiber fragility and incompatible field management.

"We've achieved a technological breakthrough in mechanical harvesting varieties. After all, seeds are the 'microchips' of the modern agricultural industry," Zhang said.

"We've developed new varieties with compact plant structures, concentrated boll (capsule) opening and easy detachment of boll stalks, using molecular breeding and gene editing. These new varieties have significantly improved the efficiency of cotton pickers, with the one-time harvest rate surpassing 90 percent. And the new variety that I am working on can even perform better."

Luo Cheng, head of the research and development center at another seed company in Xinjiang, said the company sold more than 2,200 tons of cotton seeds domestically in 2024, all for mechanical harvesting, covering an area of 81,333.33 hectares.

The company has developed six cotton varieties, all designed for mechanical harvesting. "Our seeds are also very popular abroad. Last year, our overseas sales reached 930 tons," Luo added.