More than 6,000 bales of Western Australian cotton are being shipped to international markets
Western Australia’s Port of Wyndham has seen its first cotton export from the Kimberley Cotton Gin, opening new trade opportunities for the nation’s north-west.
The cotton will be shipped to international markets on a vessel linking northern Australian ports with Singapore.
The first load consists of about 60 containers, each of them 40-feet (12m) and carrying approximately 104 bales of high-quality cotton.
“The export of cotton for the first time ever from Wyndham is a significant step following the groundbreaking opening of the Kimberley Cotton Gin earlier this year,” WA regional development and ports minister Stephen Dawson says.
WA agriculture minister Jackie Jarvis adds this is a landmark achievement, which will see a new era of value-added agriculture forged in northern Australia.
“I am proud to see this visionary investment come to fruition and look forward to seeing the benefits flow to local growers and producers, and to the broader regional economy and community,” Jarvis says.
WA trade and investment minister Divina D’Anna says the gin is already boosting local jobs across farming, processing, and transport and is a clear example of how targeted regional investment can unlock long-term economic benefits for the Kimberley region.