Online Reporter
Edgar Vhera
Specialist Writer – Agribusiness
THE Cotton Research Institute (CRI) has released new hybrid cotton varieties in response to climate change, emerging pests, rising production costs and the growing need for sustainable farming systems.
This comes against a background of declining seed cotton production in the country, productivity and quality over the years.
Speaking at a recent CRI technical field day in Gokwe North’s Chitekete area, CRI acting head Mr Marco Mare said revival of Zimbabwe’s cotton and textile industries was critical to the country’s economic
growth.
The field day ran under the theme: “Embracing innovation and unlocking potential with improved cotton varieties for sustainable cotton production.”
CRI is testing improved cotton genotypes across eight sites in Zimbabwe, including Chitekete, to find varieties that withstand climate stress and boost yields.
Mr Mare said the institute had achieved significant milestones in cotton variety development over the years.
“Two varieties, CRIMS 3 and CRIMS 4, were released in 2020, followed by CRIMS 5 and CRIMS 6 in 2022.
“In 2023, four additional varieties – CRIMS 7, CRIMS 8, CRI-HYB1 and CRI-HYB2 were released,” he disclosed.
Mr Mare said that in 2025, the institute released CRILS1, a premium long-staple cotton variety to support the revival of Zimbabwe’s textile industry through superior fibre quality, value addition, import substitution and enhanced export competitiveness, building on earlier successes.
The improved varieties offer high yield potential, excellent fibre quality, ginning out-turns exceeding 40 percent and large, well-filled bolls averaging over five grammes, enabling farmers to achieve higher
productivity and improved profitability.
CRI’s current research focuses on developing short-statured, compact cotton varieties capable of supporting plant populations of at least 75 000 plants per hectare.
