cottonseed

• By Kay Ledbetter • Cottonseed ground into flour to deliver protein to millions of people, a project to which Dr. Keerti Rathore has devoted more than half his professional career, is one step closer to reality. Rathore, a Texas A&M AgriLife Research plant biotechnologist in College Station, received word that Texas A&M’s “Petition for Determination of Non-regulated Status for Ultra-Low ... Read More »

The number of active cotton gins in Arkansas rose to 33 in 2017, paralleling an increase in cotton acres, according to statistics from the National Agricultural Statistics Service. “With a recovery in cotton acres the last couple of years, Arkansas is also seeing some gins come back to life,” says Scott Stiles, Extension economist for the University of Arkansas System ... Read More »

The deflating effects of aflatoxin on cottonseed prices in the West continue to affect producers along the Colorado River and Central Arizona. Hundred-dollar spreads between clean and unclean seed are not uncommon in a region where seed prices consistently rise above those in the rest of the Cotton Belt. These days, even though cottonseed plays a larger role in the economic mix of the cotton crop, aflatoxin seemingly draws less attention with producers than it does with those who market the cottonseed for them. Read More »

Cotton Incorporated-funded research created EasiFlo cottonseed, which was introduced to dairy feed formulators in 1998. The patented coating process allowed once hard-to-handle cottonseed to flow like shelled corn. “It really helped ramp up demand for cottonseed by dairy producers and feed mills when they realized the handling issue had been solved,” says Tom Wedegaertner, director of cottonseed research and marketing ... Read More »

Because herbicide resistance is undermining efficient U.S. cotton production, the National Cotton Council continues to urge its producer members to be proactive and creative in dealing with this serious threat. How is the NCC helping? Foremost, the NCC is strongly encouraging its producer members to actively manage herbicide resistance, which is defined as the evolved capacity of a susceptible weed population to withstand a herbicide Read More »

It is simply amazing how many products count on some part of the cotton plant to make them complete. For example, cotton linters are used to help give ice cream body and are also used to make hot dog casings. From the shells that form some bath tubs to that highly-recognized green and red sign hanging over the door of ... Read More »