which one is the real long-staple cotton?(PART 2)
Apr 28, 2025
What are the differences among different types of long-staple cotton? Are Egyptian cotton and Pima cotton long-staple cotton? And what are the differences between them and Xinjiang long-staple cotton?
These different types of cotton are actually first distinguished by their production regions. Since the climate and natural resources in these regions are more suitable for cotton cultivation, the quality of the cotton they produce is somewhat better. However, not all Xinjiang cotton is long-staple cotton, and not all Egyptian cotton is long-staple cotton either. This is similar to the relationship between Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs and hairy crabs in general. Only the Sea Island cotton from specific production areas that meet the standards can be considered long-staple cotton.
a) Xinjiang Cotton vs. Xinjiang Long-staple Cotton
Xinjiang has unique natural conditions, with abundant sunlight, suitable soil, and concentrated production areas. Therefore, it is the main cotton production region in China.Currently, the annual output is approximately 6 million tons, accounting for more than 80% of the country's total cotton output. As mentioned earlier, most of the cotton here is fine-staple cotton, and only less than 1% is long-staple cotton. That is to say, the annual output of Xinjiang long-staple cotton is only about 30,000 to 50,000 tons.
Xinjiang long-staple cotton has long fibers, less short lint, high uniformity. The spun yarn is fine and even, with a smooth surface. The cotton fabrics produced with it are skin-friendly, soft, glossy, and have a silky texture. It also has high strength and is more durable, making it the best among cottons. So, Xinjiang cotton is not equal to long-staple cotton. Only the Xinjiang Sea Island cotton varieties with a fiber length of ≥33mm are the real long-staple cotton.
b) Egyptian Cotton vs. Egyptian Long-staple Cotton
Similar to Xinjiang cotton, Egyptian cotton is also classified into fine-staple cotton and long-staple cotton.
However, unlike Xinjiang, Egypt mainly produces long-staple cotton and extra-long-staple cotton (according to international classification), while the proportion of fine-staple cotton is relatively low. The fertile land along the Nile River in Egypt provides an extremely favorable growth environment for Egyptian long-staple cotton (Sea Island cotton).Coupled with Egypt's hot climate and abundant sunlight, the quality of Egyptian long-staple cotton is far superior to that of long-staple cotton from other production areas. This is also the reason why Egyptian long-staple cotton is the most famous long-staple cotton in the world.
Egyptian long-staple cotton varieties are mainly the GIZA series. The fiber length of its high-end variety GIZA 45 can reach 36-42mm. It has long fibers, high strength, good fineness consistency, a pearl-like luster, and excellent dyeing effects. Therefore, it is also known as the "platinum among cottons".
The genuine Egyptian cotton will have this black trademark officially certified by the Egyptian government. At the same time, it usually has a serial number, such as GIZA 45, GIZA 70, etc.
c) Pima Cotton vs. SUPIMA Cotton
Pima cotton, also known as Pima cotton, is the variety with the highest output and the largest proportion among all long-staple cottons, accounting for more than 60% of the global ELS extra-long-staple cotton market. Pima cotton also belongs to Sea Island cotton (Gossypium barbadense), and it is mainly planted in the Americas - mainly in Peru and the United States. Its fiber length generally ranges from 34 to 39mm, but it is inferior to Egyptian long-staple cotton in terms of fineness, strength, and luster.
However, the Americans are not convinced and believe that the high-end Pima cotton produced in the United States is the best cotton in the world (see the logo in the picture below). Therefore, they created their own Supima certification, which stands for Superior Pima (high-quality Pima cotton). The cotton that passes the certification is the so-called Supima cotton. It has two major requirements:
1.Certification standards: It requires that the fiber length is ≥36.5mm, the breaking tenacity is ≥40cN/tex, the Micronaire value is between 3.5 and 4.9, and the whole process must be traceable.
2.Geographical limitations: The Supima trademark is only authorized to specific local cotton fields in the southwestern United States. Even if other regions (such as Peru) produce varieties with the same genes that meet its certification standards, they are not allowed to use this trademark.
3.Many local clothing brands in the United States use Supima cotton to make their ready-to-wear garments. Uniqlo also has a Supima product series, and it will clearly mark the Supima trademark on the clothes. In addition to the above three mainstream long-staple cotton varieties, there are also some niche long-staple cottons such as Indian SUVIN cotton. Due to their extremely small output, they will not be introduced here.
4.Market Status of Long-staple Cotton Products
Long-staple cotton has a low output and a high price. Although it is of excellent quality, it is not suitable for all textile products, such as garments with a low yarn count, towels, and quilts. Therefore, it is simply impossible to have so many genuine 100% long-staple cotton products on the market. Most of them are yarns that are mixed with a certain proportion of long-staple cotton raw materials, for example, around 20-30%. Some products don't even contain any long-staple cotton at all, yet the merchants still dare to promote them as being made of long-staple cotton.
So why do so many merchants dare to brazenly promote long-staple cotton? Because after the long-staple cotton raw materials have gone through multiple processes such as spinning, dyeing, weaving, and post-processing to form fabrics, it is almost extremely difficult to detect whether it is ordinary fine-staple cotton or long-staple cotton. Moreover, the cost of using genetic and other testing technologies is very high. That's why long-staple cotton has become a serious area for false promotion by some merchants. Tragically, in the end, whether long-staple cotton is used and how much of it is used mostly depends on the conscience of the merchants themselves.
So, as ordinary consumers, do we have any methods to distinguish and avoid falling into traps? There are indeed some:
Look at the price:
✅ The prices of long-staple cotton products are relatively high, at least in the range of hundreds or even thousands of yuan.
❌ If a merchant promotes a product as 100% long-staple cotton but sells it for just dozens of yuan, it is definitely false promotion.
Check the certifications:
✅ For regular long-staple cotton products, there will be relevant certifications and tags. For example, the Egyptian cotton logo and the SUPIMA trademark, etc.
❌ If a product is promoted as long-staple cotton but has no certifications or conforms to national standards, then there is a high probability that it is false promotion.
Examine the yarn count:
✅ Long-staple cotton is generally used to make products with high yarn counts. If it is a mixture with a certain proportion of long-staple cotton, the yarn count should be at least above 50S. If it is 100% long-staple cotton, then it must be yarn with a count above 80S.
❌ Merchants will definitely promote it if they use high-count yarns and long-staple cotton. If you see a product that claims to use long-staple cotton but does not mark the yarn count, or a product that promotes itself as long-staple cotton with a yarn count of 20S or 30S, then there is a high probability that it is false promotion.
