The new farm bill repeals the direct and counter-cyclical programs and authorizes a new revenue insurance product that can be purchased in addition to a producer’s existing coverage. However, enactment of the new law came too late for USDA and the private sector to offer the Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX) until 2015. Then, it will be available for purchase on all acres planted to upland cotton. As with existing insurance products, STAX

The NCC Planting Intentions Survey shows less than a one percent increase in acreage for Missouri. Based on past reports, this may or may not happen with a lot depending on the weather. In the past, I have noticed that the Missouri intentions are usually overestimated.

CHRIS DRAKE OWNER OF SANDY POINTS FARMS AND TERRITORY AGRONOMIST FOR PHYTOGEN COTTONSEED NEWSOMS, VA. I am a fourth-generation farmer in Southampton County, Va. During the summers while in college, I was employed by different entities in which I worked with cotton programs,...

Our northern friends will claim that southerners moan and groan way too much during the winter months. We simply don’t know what cold weather is all about, or so the critics say. When the weather forecasts call for two inches of snow, we panic and clean out the grocery stores. Our critics may be right about that.

BY TOMMY HORTON EDITOR If you read through the March issue of Cotton Farming that deals with pre-planting preparations and the ongoing battle against weed resistance, you can understand how serious this problem is. Our lead story certainly connects to the...

Electricity is one of the top three variable costs for a cotton gin, right next to bagging and ties, and labor. There are two main aspects to the electricity costs paid by a given cotton gin. The first is...

The TCGA internship program looks to create opportunities for program participants, and we need your help. In many ways, the internship program created by TCGA has gone according to plan. The idea for the program was generated through our safety committee back in 2008. Through the program, we have marketed our industry to many highly capable students at Texas A&M University

Seed treatments are an important investment for cotton farmers to make each year. Most will say that it’s mindboggling to think about the front-end costs made in a crop before it ever comes out of the ground. But those same...

The Cooperative Extension Service has for decades been the viable outlet for information transfer be-tween Cotton Incorporated and cotton farmers. With declining public funding to support what the Extension Service does, Cotton Incorporated has begun looking at additional methods...

BY KATE CAMPBELL CALIFORNIA FARM BUREAU The serious consequences to food production from the ongoing California drought rose to national prominence recently, as President Obama toured drought-stressed areas of the San Joaquin Valley, U.S. senators introduced a bill to address the...

The National Cotton Council has scheduled 45 informational meetings in 15 Cotton Belt states during March 17-25 to provide its members with a greater understanding of The Agricultural Act of 2014. NCC President/CEO Mark Lange said, “This new five-year...

Wallace L. Darneille, a Lubbock, Texas, cooperative marketer, was elected National Cotton Council chairman for 2014. Named during the NCC’s recent annual meeting in Washington, D.C., he succeeds Jimmy Dodson, a Robstown, Texas, cotton producer. Since 2004, Darneille has been...

I have worked in the clothing business for many years, and I have seen several changes in the production and marketing of jeans. Today, we have new finishes and treatments that give designers a wide range of looks from which to choose. We also have a new appreciation for products that do not harm the environment and utilize sustainable production practices.

Producers couldn’t stop farming their crops while the Farm Bill was being debated for two years. Neither can they afford to hold off planting until USDA crafts the final rules and regulations. Seed must be planted, and a crop nurtured until harvest. For now, it is market prices, or lack thereof, and the unknowns about the Farm Bill that will cause many producers to proceed with caution.

BY TOMMY HORTON EDITOR When visitors attend the Texas Cotton Ginners' Association Trade Show on April 3-4 in Lubbock, they'll see firsthand how far technology has taken the ginning industry. As they walk around the exhibit hall at the Civic Center,...