Cotton's Agenda

The National Cotton Council (NCC) continues to monitor 2014 farm law implementation and provide USDA with input for ensuring that the legislation’s final rules do not undermine U.S. cotton’s competitiveness. How are payment limits being implemented? ■ The farm bill institutes...

How has U.S. cotton’s environmental footprint improved in recent years? A large and reliable supply of quality lint is required to help U.S. cotton compete for market share among other fibers, including man-made. Today, though, proof of responsible production is needed to satisfy many leading apparel brands, retailers and manufacturers. Fortunately, environmental gains by U.S. cotton producers over the past 30 years have been well established by USDA and other third parties. Consider: compared to 30 years ago, soil loss has declined 68 percent; water use (irrigation) decclined 75 percent; energy use is 31 percent less; and greenhouse gas emissions are 22 percent less. Productivity, though, has improved substantially. U.S. cotton farmers only need two-thirds of the land required 30 years ago to produce an equivalent amount of cotton. Much of this improvement can be attributed to U.S. cotton producers’ annual $50 million contribution to agricultural research.

Where is the budget appropriations process? The House and Senate agricultural appropriations subcommittees conducted hearings with USDA agency officials to review their budget requests and priorities before beginning the development of their respective funding bills. The final Congressional budget resolution being negotiated between the House and Senate will set the overall level of funding available for fiscal year 2016. What are U.S. cotton’s funding priorities? Essential is maintaining resources for USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to complete boll weevil and pink bollworm eradication. These programs continue to produce documented economic and environmental benefits.

The National Cotton Council: 1) sought useful risk management tools for inclusion in the new farm law; 2) educated its members on that law’s cotton and other provisions; and 3) continues to press for the law’s proper implementation. How is...

As implementation of the 2014 farm law continues, the National Cotton Council (NCC) reminds industry members of the obstacles that were overcome in order to maintain effective risk management tools in that law. What was the initial obstacle? Even before the...

U.S. cotton has weathered several storms but also capitalized on many opportunities, and fortunately the industry is prepared to meet the challenges presented by future business climates. Are you optimistic about the cotton industry’s long-term future? The U.S. cotton industry has...

Cotton Council International (CCI), the National Cotton Council’s export promotions arm, conducts numerous successful cotton demand-building events and activities, including the Sourcing USA Summit. What is the Summit’s purpose? The biennial event provides first-class networking opportunities that result in promoting cotton...

From November 10 to December 10, the National Cotton Council has been conducting workshops to help cotton producers and others get a better grasp on the provisions of The Agricultural Act of 2014. How does STAX fit with a producer’s...

The Agricultural Act of 2014 is a farm law that features a greater reliance on crop insurance programs, and cotton producers need to understand their options before making program choices for 2015 crops. Are there any decision-making resources? USDA’s Risk Management...

For 25 years now, more than 50,000 product lines and 3 billion products have proudly carried the name COTTON USA – a worldwide registered trademark signifying quality products manufactured with high U.S. cotton content. That has translated into about 100 million bales of cotton. CCI recently revitalized that flagship brand to emphasize purity, quality and responsibility. I

Australian and U.S. cotton producers annually devote $20 million and $50 million, respectively, to agricultural research. This investment: 1) enables them to achieve continual and substantial environmental improvements; 2) eliminates the alternative of farm level certification programs; and 3) extends the research activity beyond the farm gate to all sectors associated with the manufacture of cotton yarns, textiles and apparel.

The International Textile Manufacturers Federation’s “Cotton Contamination Survey 2013″ shows the level of cottons moderately or seriously contaminated worldwide increased from 23 percent to 26 percent compared to the last survey in 2011. Though U.S. cotton still is considered one of the least contaminated growths, the survey found that plastics, stickiness and seed-coat fragments, along with other foreign materials

Before it was signed into law in mid-June by President Obama, the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) was overwhelmingly approved by the House (412-4) and Senate (91-7). The WRRDA authorizes the construction of major navigation and flood risk management projects. Of additional significance to agriculture is that the new measure also contains language designed to give farmers and ranchers some relief from EPA’s Spill Prevention Control

The NCC is working to ensure that U.S. cotton warehouses understand why compliance with the minimum shipping standard in the USDA Commodity Credit Corporation's Cotton Storage Agreement is vital to the cotton industry's health. The NCC's Board of Directors earlier this year approved a NCC Cotton Flow Committee recommendation that will give USDA the ability to see shipping order scheduling exchanges between merchants and warehouses.

How will cotton transition payments be paid? This was a popular question raised at the education meetings. Due to the late passage of new farm legislation and necessary implementation timelines, new insurance products will not be available until the 2015 crop. To bridge the gap, upland cotton will have a transition payment for the 2014 crop. The payment equates to 5.4 cents/pound paid on all 2013 base acres and direct payment yield. The payment extends to