The 2008 Georgia Cotton Quality Awards were presented earlier this year at a special event in Tifton, Ga. The awards banquet and meeting were held in conjunction with the annual Georgia Cotton Conference.

The awards began in 2005 and are sponsored by Bayer CropScience and the Georgia Cotton Commission and administered by the University of Georgia Cotton Team, Bayer Crop-Science, the Georgia Cotton Commission and the Southeastern Cotton Ginners Association.

These awards are given for three acreage categories (acres of land produced) in each of four regions of the state and are based on the average loan value per pound of lint for all of the cotton produced.

The following producers, gins and county agents were honored:

Less Than 500 Acres
Region 1 – Producer Don King (Turner County), Worth Gin, county agent Scott Utley. Loan value: 55.37.
Region 2 – Producer Mark Bryant (Jefferson County), Farmers Gin, county agent Jim Crawford. Loan value: 53.69.
Region 3 – Producer Dennis Purvis (Cook County), BCT Gin, county agent Ben Tucker. Loan value: 55.33.
Region 4 – Producer Walter Powell (Colquitt County), The Cotton Gin, county agent Scott Brown. Loan value: 56.51.

500 To 1,000 Acres
Region 1 – Producer Steven Metcalf (Turner County), Sconyers Gin, county agent Scott Utley. Loan value: 53.13.
Region 2 – Producer Charles Smith Jr. (Jefferson County), Farmers Gin, county agent Jim Crawford. Loan value: 55.16.
Region 3 – Riverbottom Farms (Lanier County), BCT Gin, county agent Elvin Andrews. Loan value: 55.30.
Region 4 – Producer Jeff Croom (Seminole County), Clover Leaf Gin, county agent Rome Ethredge. Loan value: 55.80.

More Than 1,000 Acres
Region 1 – Hobby Farms (Turner County), Sconyers Gin, county agent Scott Utley. Loan value: 51.29.
Region 3 – Dewitt Farms (Brooks County), BCT Gin, county agent Johnny Whidden. Loan value: 54.60.
Region 4 – Mims Farms (Seminole County), Clover Leaf Gin, county agent Rome Ethredge. Loan value: 55.05.

The Georgia Cotton Commission contributed information for this article.