Özet:

Cotton plant makes positive contributions on the development of the agriculture and industry of the regions and countries where it is grown together with its wide utilization areas, the added-value and employment opportunities it creates. Looking at the worldwide cotton trade, as of 2020-21, several major producers including India, USA, China, Pakistan and Brazil realize about 70% of the total world exports. However, the countries including the USA and EU countries and China, try to manage the international cotton trade with posing certain provisions by using the power of the World Trade Organization (WTO) are developing policy instruments based on economic and political power to protect their farmers. In this case, the high agricultural subsidies imposed by the developed countries put pressure on world cotton prices and further complicate the situation for cotton producers of underdeveloped countries like Africa, who are just trying to take a place in the world cotton market but are under severe economic conditions. Finally, the global Covid-19 epidemic has also negatively affected cotton agriculture and economy, as in all areas of the economy worldwide, and it is thought that this negative impact will continue in the next few years. In this review, in addition to general information about cotton plants and agriculture, some recent data on the world cotton agriculture and economy are shared, and the global cotton trade, organic and genetically modified cotton production and the effects of the Covid-19 epidemic on the cotton economy are discussed.