Old Spinning, Weaving factories re-operate at 60% capacity

CAIRO – March 15 2024: To address local demands, the old factories of the Misr Spinning and Weaving Company in Mahalla city, situated in Egypt’s Delta region, have commenced operations at a 60% capacity. Concurrently, the remaining machinery is being utilized to produce high-quality yarn, as reported by Youm7.

The operation of the factories is geared towards producing thick and medium yarns, which fulfill 98.5% of the requirements of both the global and local markets, according to sources at the State’s Public Sector as reported by the newspaper. It was emphasized that the reactivation of the factories would result in saving $3 billion previously allocated for importing these types of yarns.

In mid-February 2024, the Egyptian cabinet issued a decision to establish fixed prices for the supply of cotton in the upcoming 2024/2025 season. This initiative is aimed at bolstering support for Egyptian farmers and fostering stability within the cotton industry.

Under the newly implemented pricing framework, a quintal of medium-staple cotton in Upper Egypt will be set at LE 10,000, while a quintal of long-staple cotton in Lower Egypt will be priced at LE 12,000. This measure is anticipated to offer farmers a dependable income and incentivize them to continue cultivating cotton.

The decision to institute guaranteed prices for cotton aligns with the Egyptian government's broader endeavors to bolster the agricultural sector and safeguard the welfare of farmers. By ensuring equitable compensation for their crops, the government seeks to enhance the livelihoods of farmers and promote sustainable agricultural practices.

Brief on cotton cultivation history in Egypt

Historically, ancient Egyptians had planted cotton during the era of pharaonic King Ahmose II (the 26th dynasty) as it was revealed by the ancient Greek writer Herodotus, according to a study of Cotton plant " Existence in Ancient Egypt by Venice Attia from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and published in December 2018.

The study also said that Roman author Pliny the Elder wrote that ancient Egyptian priests were wearing cotton-fabric clothes. The study, which relied on The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology vol. 20, No. ½ and published in June 1934, added that British archeologist Mr. J W Crowfoot mentioned that Nubia-Kush kingdom was planting cotton for clothing.

The study added that Ottoman ruler Muhammad Ali of Egypt brought an improved strain of cotton from India to enhance cotton plantation and its trade in Egypt.

To improve cotton cultivation and get many high revenues, Muhammad Ali invested money in the infrastructure of irrigation and transportation and managed to introduce the commercial production of cotton in 1822, according to a bulletin titled Cultivation and Production of the Egyptian Cotton.

By the 1830s, the core of modern Egypt consisted of cotton spinning and weaving, added the bulletin, which was published by the Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture Library in 2015.

In his book From the Map of the Egyptian Agriculture in 1984, Egyptian scholar and geographer Gamal Hamdan said that the area of cotton cultivation was fluctuated over Egyptian history due to certain factors; It boomed during the American civil war and the Korean war, while its cultivation sharply declines due to the WWI and WWII because of the closing of exportation market. The maximum cultivated area for cotton reached about 2 million feddans in 1961, while its minimum cultivated areas were less than one million feddans in 1945, he added.

Additional reporting by Samar Samir