In Uzbekistan, a total of 25.9 thousand tons of cocoon raw material was harvested from January to September 2023, according to the Uzbekistan Statistics Agency, Daryo.uz reports.
This figure increased by 7% compared to the corresponding period in 2022.
The largest share of the total cocoon cultivation volume was in the Samarkand region (12.9%). High production rates of raw materials were also recorded in the Andijan (12.8%), Bukhara (10.5%), and Kashkadarya (9.5%) regions.
Uzbekistan ranks third in the world in terms of silk production after China and India. Despite the fact that, according to the International Sericulture Commission, Uzbekistan increased silk production by 42% from 2008 to 2014 (reaching 1,100 tons of silk), its share in global production is relatively small, around 0.6%. The majority of the world's silk is produced by China (82%) and India (16%). However, Uzbekistan's share among CIS countries in the total silk production is over 85%.
Silk serves as a source of hard currency for Uzbekistan, with 70% of the harvest in the form of raw silk, dry cocoons, silk threads, yarn, and fabric exported to India, Iran, China, Bangladesh, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, and Russia. The remaining portion is processed by the local textile industry.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
January 12, 2024