At the recent Beltwide Cotton Conferences, Dr. Christopher Saski, Professor in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at Clemson University, was presented with the 2025 Cotton Genetics Research Award. Saski also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Georgia, the University of Arkansas, and Colorado State University, and has also directed the Clemson University Genomics Institute and …
U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol Appoints Co-Directors
The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol has announced the appointment of Marjory Walker and Liz Hershfield as co-directors to accelerate the program’s growth by advancing market adoption, developing new market-driven offerings, and fostering greater collaboration across the entire cotton value chain. Walker and Hershfield will oversee distinct but complementary pillars of the program. Walker will lead the operational and programmatic framework, …
Drought and Heat in Cotton Belt Outlook
While much of the southern Cotton Belt is in a deep freeze right now, the big concern in the forecast for this season is drought and heat. Eric Snodgrass of Nutrien Ag Solutions told cotton growers at the 2026 Beltwide Cotton Conferences that much of the weather risk facing the Cotton Belt in 2026 can be traced to the Pacific …
Cotton Trust Protocol Grows Sustainability
The U.S. cotton industry’s voluntary sustainability program has achieved significant success in just five years, according to an update from the National Cotton Council at recent Beltwide Cotton Conferences. Marjory Walker, Vice President of Council Operations, says the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol has grown rapidly since it launched in July 2020. “We actually have 2,500 global members representing 25 brands …
Breeding Cotton for Jassid Resistance
The cotton jassid is a brand new pest for U.S. cotton growers but India has been dealing with it for years, which makes that country a good source for ways to control it, including plant breeding. Roy Cantrell, Wheelertex Consulting, has spent the past ten years consulting in India and he shared some of his insights at the recent Beltwide …
ZimmCast 755 – Beltwide Cotton Conferences
Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I’m Chuck Zimmerman. Part of December into January was a little rough for the ZimmComm Team. Between some bugs going around to two short trips to see family. But now all’s well and it’s time for a new episode. In December we posted some “Oh the places we’ve been!” details. We started in the …
Terrifying Tariffs and the Global Cotton Market
The Beltwide Cotton Economic Outlook Conference this year was a sobering one for the industry. “Cotton prices have been stagnant since planting…we’ve traded in more or less a six cent range over the last six months,” said Beau Stephenson, Omnicotton, Inc. in his presentation on the Changing Global Cotton Market. “This is not an exciting price pattern for the producers …
Capstone Journeys in Cotton Engineering
Engineering students at Texas A&M are working on capstone projects that could help the cotton industry in the future. Michael Buser is Professor and Endowed Chair in Cotton Engineering, Ginning and Mechanization at Texas A&M and he had two student teams who presented their projects at last week’s Beltwide Cotton Conferences. “One is working on a feeder for a breeder …
Seizing Opportunities for U.S. Cotton
The purpose of the National Cotton Council is to increase profitability for the industry, and it is especially important when the market is down and growers are struggling. Marjory Walker, NCC VP Operations and Communications, presented some of the council’s recent initiatives at this week’s 2026 Beltwide Cotton Conferences. “One of the most innovative, I think, is Buying America Cotton …
Cotton Consultants Conference Covers the Latest
From what’s new in crop protection technology from the major players, to what’s new that could impact this growing season, the 2026 Beltwide Cotton Consultants Conference covered the waterfront on the first day Wednesday. Conference coordinator Hank Jones was pleased to see a good crowd. “We had a very good turnout from around the belt,” said Jones. “I know there’s …