From October 30 to 31, the 2026 Anhui Cotton Mechanical Harvesting Demonstration Meeting, co-hosted by the Yangtze River Research Center of ICR‑CAAS and the Institute of Cash Crops of Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, took place in Wangjiang County, Anqing. The event showcased a new model of early‑maturing mechanically harvested cotton direct‑seeded after rapeseed or wheat in the Yangtze River Basin, featuring new ICR‑CAAS cotton varieties, simplified cultivation packages and mechanized harvesting technologies. More than 100 participants attended, including cotton experts from Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi and Anhui, agricultural technicians and large cotton growers. Zhou Kehai, Deputy Director of the Yangtze River Research Center and Deputy Director of Anqing Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, chaired the meeting.

Participants visited a thousand‑mu demonstration plot in Huayang Town, Wangjiang, to inspect crop growth and watch live mechanical harvesting. An expert panel conducted on-site yield testing for CCRI 99001 and CCRI 9B02. These varieties feature good fiber quality, early maturity, concentrated boll setting and stable high yield. Suited for post‑rapeseed/wheat direct seeding along the Yangtze River, they follow the principle of not competing with grain for farmland and ease longstanding pain points of labor intensity and low returns in traditional cotton planting.

At the seminar, local officials and provincial experts exchanged experience on machine‑picked cotton development. Researcher Wang Ning from ICR‑CAAS delivered a technical report on the breeding and application of CCRI 9B02.

The meeting recognized the successful demonstration in Wangjiang. This model integrates agronomy and farm machinery, with a growth cycle of around 110 days — 10–20 days shorter than conventional cotton. It cuts fertilizer and pesticide use by over 20% and labor input by more than 30%, forming an efficient, simplified production pathway suitable for inland cotton zones.

Attendees agreed to accelerate the establishment of a green, high‑efficiency production system for machine‑harvested cotton in the Yangtze River Basin and strengthen cross‑provincial collaboration to drive high‑quality development of the regional cotton industry.