As reported by Mr of the National , China has made successful strives to improve its cotton quality by genetic engineering. After a successful first campaign on insect resistance, cotton quality was the second target as natural cotton quality in China was somewhat low, reaching only 32 spins per thread. By genetically improving the fiber quality in terms of strength and yield, the quality now is 60 spins per thread, exceeding present top world performance. As China presently imports 40 % of its cotton, this achievement is an important step towards self sufficiency

China Science News online