Misc
Ranked: The World’s Top Cotton Producers
The Top Cotton Producers
Cotton is present in our everyday life, from clothes to coffee strainers, and more recently in masks to control the spread of COVID-19.
As the most-used natural fiber, cotton has become the most important non-food agricultural product. Currently, approximately half of all textiles require cotton fibers.
The above infographic lists the world’s top cotton producers, using data from the United States Department of Agriculture.
Fancy Fabric
Originating from the Arabic word “quton,” meaning fancy fabric, cotton is a staple fiber made up of short fibers twisted together to form yarn.
The earliest production of cotton was around 5,000 B.C. in India, and today, around 25 million tons of cotton are produced each year.
Currently, five countries make up around 75% of global cotton production, with China being the world’s biggest producer. The country is responsible for over 23% of global production, with approximately 89 million cotton farmers and part-time workers. Cotton’s importance cannot be understated, as it is the primary input for the Chinese textile industry along with many other nations’ textile industries.
| Top Cotton Producers | 2020/2021 (metric tons) | 2021/2022 (metric tons) |
|---|---|---|
| 🇨🇳 China | 6,445,000 | 5,835,000 |
| 🇮🇳 India | 6,009,000 | 5,334,000 |
| 🇺🇸 United States | 3,181,000 | 3,815,000 |
| 🇧🇷 Brazil | 2,356,000 | 2,504,000 |
| 🇦🇺 Australia | 610,000 | 1,252,000 |
| 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 980,000 | 1,306,000 |
| 🇹🇷 Turkey | 631,000 | 827,000 |
| 🌐 Other | 4,059,000 | 4,282,000 |
| Total | 24,271,000 | 25,155,000 |
The United States is the leading global exporter of cotton, exporting three-fourths of its crop with China as the top buyer.
Despite its importance for the global economy, cotton production faces significant sustainability challenges.
The Controversy Over Cotton
Cotton is one of the largest users of water among all agricultural commodities, and production often involves applying pesticides that threaten soil and water quality.
Along with this, production often involves forced and child labor. According to the European Commission, child labor in the cotton supply chain is most common in Africa and Asia, where it comes from small-holder farmers.
In 2020, U.S. apparel maker Patagonia stopped sourcing cotton from the autonomous territory of Xinjiang because of reports about forced labor and other human rights abuses against Uighurs and other ethnic minorities.
L Brands, the parent company of Victoria’s Secret, has also committed to eliminating Chinese cotton from its supply chain. Whether these changes in supply chains impact China’s cotton production and its practices, cotton remains essential to materials found across our daily lives.
Misc
Charted: The End-of-Life Recycling Rates of Select Metals
End-of-life recycling rates measure the percentage of a material that is recovered at the end of its useful life, rather than being disposed of or incinerated.
Charted: The End-of-Life Recycling Rates of Select Metals
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on Apple or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
We visualize the end-of-life recycling rates (EOL-RR) of commonly used metals in the economy. Data is sourced from the International Energy Agency, last updated in 2021.
Tracking recycling rates helps manage resources better and make smarter policies, guiding efforts to cut down on waste.
Ranked: The End of Life Recycling Rates of Select Metals
Gold has an 86% recycling rate according to the latest available data. Per the Boston Consulting Group, one-third of total gold supply was met through recycling between 1995–2014.
| Metal | End-of-life recycling rate (2021) | 🔍 Used In |
|---|---|---|
| Gold | 86% | 💍 Jewelry / Electronics |
| Platinum/Palladium | 60% | 🔬 Optical fibers / Dental fillings |
| Nickel | 60% | 🔋 Batteries / Turbine blades |
| Silver | 50% | 💍 Jewelry / Mirrors |
| Copper | 46% | 🔌 Electrical wiring / Industrial equipment |
| Aluminum | 42% | ✈️ Aeroplane parts / Cans |
| Chromium | 34% | 🍽️ Stainless steel / Leather tanning |
| Zinc | 33% | 🔗 Galvanizing metal / Making rubber |
| Cobalt | 32% | 🔋 Batteries / Turbine engines |
| Lithium | 0.5% | 🔋 Batteries / Pacemakers |
| REEs | 0.2% | 📱 Mobile phones / Hard drives |
Note: Figures are rounded.
Several factors can influence metal recycling rates. According to this International Resource Panel report, metals that are used in large quantities (steel) or have a high value (gold) tend to have higher recycling rates.
However, for materials used in small quantities in complex products (rare earth elements in electronics), recycling becomes far more challenging.
Finally, a metal’s EOL-RR is strongly influenced by the least efficient link in the recycling chain, which is typically how it’s initially collected.
Learn More on the Voronoi App 
If you enjoyed this post, check out Critical Materials: Where China, the EU, and the U.S. Overlap which shows how critical materials are classified within different jurisdictions.
Misc
Companies with the Most Fossil Fuel and Cement CO2 Emissions
Half of the world’s total fossil fuel and cement carbon dioxide emissions in 2023 came from just 36 companies.
Companies with the Most Fossil Fuel and Cement CO2 Emissions
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
Key Takeaways
- Half of the world’s fossil fuel and cement carbon dioxide emissions in 2023 came from just 36 entities, according to a report by the Carbon Majors Project
- If Saudi Aramco were a country, it would be the fourth-largest polluter in the world, after China, the U.S., and India.
- Five publicly traded oil companies—ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, TotalEnergies, and BP—together accounted for 5% of global carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels.
Chinese Companies Dominate the List
This graphic is based on Carbon Majors, a database of historical production data from 180 of the world’s largest oil, gas, coal, and cement producers representing 169 active and 11 inactive entities.
In 2023, the top 20 highest carbon-producing entities were responsible for 17.5 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (GtCO₂e) in emissions, accounting for 40.8% of global fossil fuel and cement CO₂ emissions. The list is largely dominated by state-owned companies, with 16 of the top 20 being state-controlled. Notably, eight Chinese entities contributed to 17.3% of global fossil fuel and cement CO₂ emissions in 2023.
| Entity | Total emissions (MtCO2e) | Global CO2 emissions (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saudi Aramco | 4.4% |
| 2 | Coal India | 3.7% |
| 3 | CHN Energy | 3.7% |
| 4 | Jinneng Group | 2.9% |
| 5 | Cement industry of China | 2.8% |
| 6 | National Iranian Oil Company | 2.8% |
| 7 | Gazprom | 2.3% |
| 8 | Rosneft | 1.9% |
| 9 | Shandong Energy | 1.7% |
| 10 | China National Coal Group | 1.7% |
| 11 | Abu Dhabi National Oil Company | 1.6% |
| 12 | CNPC | 1.6% |
| 13 | Shaanxi Coal and Chemical Industry Group | 1.6% |
| 14 | Iraq National Oil Company | 1.3% |
| 15 | Shanxi Coking Coal Group | 1.3% |
| 16 | ExxonMobil | 1.3% |
| 17 | Sonatrach | 1.2% |
| 18 | Chevron | 1.1% |
| 19 | Kuwait Petroleum Corp. | 1.0% |
| 20 | Petrobras | 1.0% |
| 21 | Shell | 0.9% |
| 22 | Pemex | 0.9% |
| 23 | TotalEnergies | 0.8% |
| 24 | QatarEnergy | 0.8% |
| 25 | Lukoil | 0.8% |
| 26 | BP | 0.8% |
| 27 | Glencore | 0.7% |
| 28 | China Huaneng Group | 0.7% |
| 29 | Luan Chemical Group | 0.7% |
| 30 | Equinor | 0.7% |
| 31 | Peabody Energy | 0.7% |
| 32 | Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. | 0.6% |
| 33 | CNOOC | 0.6% |
| 34 | ConocoPhillips | 0.6% |
| 35 | Eni | 0.6% |
| 36 | Petronas | 0.5% |
Coal continued to be the largest source of emissions in 2023, representing 41.1% of emissions in the database and continuing a steady upward trend since 2016. Coal emissions grew by 1.9% (258 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent – MtCO₂e) from 2022, while cement saw the largest relative increase at 6.5% (82 MtCO₂e), driven by expanding production.
In contrast, natural gas emissions fell by 3.7% (164 MtCO₂e), and oil emissions remained stable with only a slight increase of 0.3% (73 MtCO₂e).
Learn More on the Voronoi App
To learn more about this topic, check out this graphic that shows greenhouse gas emissions by sector in 2023, according to data was compiled by the United Nations. The power sector remains the largest emissions contributor.
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