The rapid spread of COVID-19 has severely impacted the global cotton supply chain. An unexpected reduction in cotton mill use data is observed across all of the major cotton spinning countries, including China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkey and Vietnam. Cotton spinning in China fell by upwards of 90% during the height of the pandemic in that country in early March. ... Read More »
The Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University has released a new report showing the economic impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on production agriculture in Texas. Since the beginning of the pandemic many agricultural commodity prices have dropped 20% to 30%, according to the report. Many Texas producers have already experienced losses, and if prices do not ... Read More »
• By Carroll Smith, Editor • In the midst of the ongoing global pandemic, farmers get up every day and head to the fields to plant their crops. They don’t have the luxury of waiting for the crisis to pass. Farming, along with the companies that support the profession, is deemed an essential business that provides quality food and fiber ... Read More »
The National Cotton Council is taking every available opportunity to ensure our members get assistance and resources for help in navigating the COVID-19 negatively altered business landscape. How has the U.S. cotton industry been affected? ■ The April U.S. Department of Agriculture supply/demand estimates indicate world cotton consumption was down 7.6 million bales (6.4%) from the March report. The report ... Read More »
• By Linda Geist • Farmers and ranchers face unique safety risks as COVID-19 continues to spread. The predicted peak of the COVID-19 outbreak likely will hit as spring planting season shifts into high gear, says Rusty Lee, University of Missouri Extension field specialist in agronomy. Physical distancing becomes difficult as farmers receive seed and chemical deliveries, he says. Shipments ... Read More »
I’ve always been impressed by farmers’ ability to adapt to the unknown and figure out ways around challenges or unexpected obstacles. When they embark on a new season, farmers can’t sit down and map out exactly how it is going to go. What they do know is that the weather and the markets can be fickle, and forecasts only go ... Read More »
• By Mary Hightower • Rice prices continued to grow slowly, while the shadow of COVID-19 continued to loom darkly over the world’s cotton industry, according to a report Monday by agricultural economists with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. The report, published online at https://bit.ly/AR-Ag-Eco-Impacts2020, was produced by Scott Stiles, Extension economist; Brad Watkins, professor; Bob Stark, ... Read More »
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