Rain and snow patterns were looking good in January

It's Time To Prepare For Planting
     
 
CALIFORNIA
Bob Hutmacher
rbhutmacher@ucdavis.edu

Rain and snow patterns were looking good in January, and we continue with some favorable weather patterns as we head toward the 2010 SJV planting season in California. Water supply issues are far from a "done deal" for 2010, so we are still hoping for some better decisions and release of workable amounts of water for California farmers.

Uncertain irrigation water supply situations will likely again result in a range of strategies for pre-plant and early season irrigations, and these will impact irrigation scheduling and strategies for the rest of the growing season.

This "set-up" to the growing season could again make decisions on which fields to plant or fallow, timing of pre-plant irrigations and first post-planting irrigation more difficult. With all of the changes in cropping patterns of the past couple of years, with expansion and contraction of alfalfa, safflower, cotton and small grains acreage, it may be useful to develop some new ideas about where cotton could fit into your production plans.

source : cottonfarming

Cotton harvest in Georgia

It's Time To Prepare For Planting
     
GEORGIA
Guy Collins
guyc@uga.edu

Cotton harvest in Georgia is still ongoing as of mid-February, but the majority of cotton is finally out of the field. Hopefully, our rains will subside long enough for producers to get some field work completed. With that in mind, there are a number of factors to consider as we prepare for planting the 2010 crop. Most fields that I've seen across the state have some amount of damage resulting from the sub-optimal harvest conditions that we've recently experienced.

When planning for the 2010 season, producers need to consider the repair costs for the extensive washouts and large equipment ruts. In addition to the costs of field repairs, producers need to consider the time required to repair these fields.

 
TEXAS
Randy Boman
r-boman@tamu.edu

The 2009 crop year in the High Plains was a very mixed bag. Some producers did very well with irrigated cotton, some was below par and the dryland acreage where we had a crop was difficult. The Lubbock and Lamesa Classing Office results reflected this. We ended up with around 56 percent color grades 11 or 21, substantially higher than the 40 percent observed in 2008.


source : cottonfarming

What other major regulatory issues are of concern to the industry?

A Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling stated that a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit is required under the Clean Water Act for any pesticide application on, over or near "waters of the United States." The NCC was an original plaintiff in a suit against EPA on this issue and joined with other agricultural groups in filing a petition of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court seeking reversal of the Sixth Circuit decision in NCC vs. EPA. The NCC also is actively engaged with EPA to develop a general permit system, despite our concerns with the Justice Department's response that says there is no need for a Supreme Court review. The Justice Department's rationale is there is adequate time to mitigate the impact of the Sixth Circuit's incorrect decision by issuing "general permits" for pesticide use.

The NCC also is active in a coalition to ensure that final food safety legislation does not include many of the objectionable provisions of the House-passed food safety bill. That measure contained several negotiated on-farm exemptions but still includes gins and cottonseed facilities under its provisions. The NCC joined several other organizations and the grain trade on a letter outlining concerns with the House bill's provisions and noting recommended improvements for the Senate bill prior to markup.

Another concern is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) proposed regulation of combustible dust in the workplace. The NCC and seven other cotton industry organizations submitted detailed comments that urged the agency to focus its efforts on industries that have experienced problems with combustible dust. OSHA should not attempt to regulate operations such as gins, warehouses, cottonseed storage and processing facilities, and textile mills that can provide science supportive of why such incidences cannot occur. Answers also were provided to 69 OSHA-posed questions.

source : cottonfarming

Such is the case with the two men

Making The Case For Bipartisanship
By Tommy Horton
Such is the case with the two men featured on the cover of this month's magazine – Rep. Travis Childers (D-Miss.) and Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas). Even though their parties may dig in and battle on a lot of fronts during any session of Congress, we can take solace in the fact that they are united in defending the interests of cotton producers.

Perhaps that is to be expected because each man represents an important cotton production region – Neugebauer in the Texas High Plains and Childers in north Mississippi. We thought it would be informative to conduct an interview with both of them on issues that are on the minds of a lot of cotton producers. After reading their responses on pages 10, 12, and 13, you might think they are in the same political party. That's how united they appear to be when it comes to farm policy.

Whether it's Neugebauer addressing a Plains Cotton Growers meeting in Lubbock in previous years or Childers making appearances at a Delta Council or National Cotton Ginners meeting, I have noticed a common trait with both congressmen. They appear to be genuine and approachable. Maybe that's just their nature or perhaps it's a case of being a product of their upbringing in Mississippi and Texas.

The topic can be WTO, payment limits, Farm Bill implementation or climate legislation. They somehow find common ground on important issues, and that bodes well for the cotton industry. Let's hope this kind of cohesiveness can continue for the foreseeable future.
source : cottonfarming

Dodson Elected ACP Chairman

James F. "Jimmy" Dodson, a Robs-town, Texas, producer, was elected as chairman of the American Cotton Producers (ACP) of the National Cotton Council (NCC) for 2010.

Dodson has served on and chaired various ACP committees, including his current chairmanship of the ACP Farm Policy Committee.

Darnielle To Lead CCI

Wally Darneille, a Lubbock, Texas, cooperative official, will serve as 2010 president of Cotton Council Inter-national (CCI). CCI is the National Cotton Council's (NCC) export promotions arm and carries out programs in more than 50 countries.

Darneille, who is president and CEO of Plains Cotton Cooperative Association, serves on the boards of the NCC, AMCOT, Telmark, the Southwest Council of Agribusiness, the Texas Agricultural Cooperative Council, Denimatrix and The Seam.


source : cottonfarming

Texan Eddie Smith To Lead NCC

     

Eddie Smith, a Floydada, Texas, cotton producer, was elected chairman of the Na-tional Cotton Council (NCC) for 2010. Named during the NCC's recent annual meeting in Memphis, Tenn., he served as the NCC's vice chairman in 2009 and succeeds Jon W. Hardwick, a Newellton, La., cotton producer.

He has served as a director of Floydada Cooperative Gin and was elected to the board of directors of Plains Cotton Cooperative Association (PCCA) in 1984. He was unanimously elected chairman of PCCA in 2004.

The NCC's vice chairman for 2010 is Charles H. Parker, a cotton producer from Senath, Mo.

Planting Target: 10.1 Million Acres

U.S. cotton producers intend to plant 10.1 million acres of cotton this spring, up more than 10 percent from 2009, according to the National Cotton Council's 27th Annual Early Season Planting Intentions Survey.

Upland cotton intentions are 9.9 million acres, an increase of 10 percent from 2009, while extra long staple (ELS) intentions of 176,000 acres represent a 24 percent rise. The results were announced at the NCC's 2010 Annual Meeting.


source : cottonfarming

Texas Will Challenge EPA’s Recent Actions

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples has joined Attorney General Greg Abbott and Gov. Rick Perry in challenging the EPA's authority to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. The petition outlines how EPA has ignored major scientific conclusions and questions the federal government decision to regulate greenhouse gas emissions based on fragile claims.

"EPA's move to regulate greenhouse gases would impose devastating rules on those Texans who fuel one of our state's largest economic sectors – farmers and ranchers," Commissioner Staples says.

"Not only does state law require this, but it is also a fundamental principle by which regulators all across the United States have always lived. EPA has ignored extensive research on greenhouse gas emissions and based this significant regulation on faulty data."

source : cottonfarming