The worldwide demand for cotton is driving up cotton output throughout the world, particularly in South-East Asia. As a result, the market for mechanical harvesting increases, according to a study of market research agency TMR. Apart from the well-known global professional manufacturers of cotton pickers, also regional manufacturers are playing their part.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the global production of cotton is expected to increase by 6%, marginally higher than the four year average, reaching 119.4 million bales for 2021/2022 (August-July). Top cotton producing countries include the U.S., China, India, and Brazil. These countries account for approximately 73% of the total global cotton production. Growing cotton production is boosting the demand for cotton picker harvesting machines.
The cotton picker is the best choice of equipment when repeated cotton harvesting is to be carried out, as it picks the cotton from the boll instead of stripping the entire plant along with leaves and steams. Thus, rise in demand for cotton around the world has fueled cotton production, which further propels the demand for pickers.
Benefits drive the market
Growing adoption of automation and technology to ease production and harvesting is estimated to fuel the cotton picker market. The cotton picker offers numerous advantages such as the machine increases yield and productivity, as it can pick cotton in various intervals of time and the machine causes less damage to the crops. Mechanical harvesting carried out by using cotton picker is widely employed in the U.S., Europe, Australia, etc. These countries and regions mostly uses machines to pick cotton in order to increase cotton picking speed, as it create faster harvest than manually picking of cotton and enhances efficiency. Moreover, manufacturers are developing machines that are simple to use and require little technical expertise to comprehend their functions and applications. Thus, the overall market is expected to witness expansion during the forecast period.
Regional outlook
The cotton picker market in Asia Pacific is projected to hold a major share of the global market and advance at a notable CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) during the forecast period, owing to a rise in cotton production and need for automation in the region.
Growth of the market is attributed to economic development in China and India, which holds major share of the total cotton production globally. Both countries account for around half of the total global crop. Furthermore, rising income of farmers and government support have also fueled the demand for cotton picker in the region. Asia Pacific is followed by North America, in terms of cotton production, where farmers are striving toward technology improvement and enhancement of equipment.
Key players in global market
The global cotton picker market is consolidated due to the presence of few key players. Competition is expected to intensify in the next few years due to the entry of several local players. Manufacturers are focusing on technological developments and are trying to cater to the demands of customers by introducing intelligent pickers equipped with AI technology. For instance, Green Robot Machinery from India has developed a robotic cotton picker consisting of multiple autonomous robotics arms (includes stereo camera and 3 degree actuators), which are mounted on semi-autonomous electric farm vehicle. The camera on the robotic arm helps detect and locate cotton within 3mm precision in real-time.
Additionally, John Deere introduced cotton picker that can harvest maximum number of acres per hour possible including high-speed stalk lifters and ultra-fast cotton-grabbing spindles.
Prominent players operating in the global cotton picker market are Deere & Company, CNH Industrial N.V., Jiangsu Wallong – Hsin Machinery Engineering Corporation Ltd., Xinjiang Boshiran Intelligent Agricultural Machinery Co., Ltd., Shandong Swan Cotton Industrial Machinery Stock Co. Ltd, Jiangsu World Agricultural Machinery, Changzhou Dongfeng Agricultural Machinery Group Co., Hubei Fotma Machinery Co., Ltd., Wuhan Anon Tech Trade Co., Ltd., and Özen Is Tarım Makinaları.
