C.R.I. is one of the oldest cotton research institutions in Egypt and worldwide. Its inception dates back to the first decade of the 20th century when it was established as a unit within a small research station at Giza little before the Ministry of Agriculture was created in 1913 . In 1919 ,GOE established the “ Cotton Research Council” to investigate ways and means of improving yield, enhance resistance to pests and diseases, design and implement soil research and plant physiology ( fertilization and nutrition ) .
In 1935, the Experimental Spinning mill was established to compliment the other technical departments .In 1971 ,the Agricultural Research Center was established to mark a new era of integrated research, including breeding , Agronomy , quality and extension .
At the initial stage , research focused on breeding improved , high yielding varieties, based on selection of diserable mutations or genetic segregation of earlier natural hybridization . As of 1921, the Cotton Research Council approved the utilization of artificial hybridization to develop new cotton varieties . The aim was to incorporate into a new strain such diserable traits from parent plants . The technique was further developed to become the major approach for developing new varieties.