At the Amarillo Farm and Ranch Show Cotton Conference last week, Kody Bessent, Plains Cotton Growers CEO, opened his outlook presentation saying, “It’s been a wild year.”
Many High Plains producers, ginners and merchants have stated this year is unprecedented in terms of input costs, market volatility, crop conditions, etc. The High Plains is not alone.
Georgia
“The southeast had a decent crop year,” said Taylor Sills, executive director of the Georgia Cotton Commission. “We needed it, too. Parts of the state, especially southwest Georgia, hasn’t had a good crop in four to five years.”
Sills added that Georgia has harvested roughly 90% of their crop, but overall yield is still hard to measure at this point.
“I think Georgia farmers could plant a lot more corn in 2023, but time will tell.”
Oklahoma
The gin is going to process maybe 8% to 10% of what it normally gins,” said Tom Buchanan with Cotton Growers Co-Op in Altus, Oklahoma. “We’re at a relative total loss in this area.”
Buhanan added that Tillman County, east of Altus, has about 15,000 acres with good groundwater, which has resulted in better quality and good yields. “The bright spot is that it’s wet out here, which is a good issue to have for next year. This is as green as this country has looked in a long time. A lot of wheat has been planted, which is what our guys are using for their cover crops. These are the best wheat stands we’ve had in years. It makes you feel better when you drive down the road and the country is green.”
He added that the lake’s level still needed to rise for next year’s success.
“We all need to start going to church,” Buchanan quipped. “We all need more rain!”
South Texas
“Smith Gin Coop typically gins 85,000 to 100,000 bales — this year we ginned 20,000,” said Jon Whatley, producer in San Patricio and Nueces Counties in the Coastal Bend region. “Ginning after the demand charge was a huge concern for us this year.”
North of Corpus Christi the crop never came up, added Whatley. “ South of Corpus Christi there was some cotton and a little along the coast, but the crop year was pretty much awful from beginning to end. And windy.”
Toby Robertson, producer in Nueces County, said yields were better than expected in terms of quality, but yield suffered. “My average for the last five years is around 1,300 pounds per acre. This year I averaged 300 pounds per acre.” Robertson harvested 85% of his crop, battling 10 inches of rain during the last two weeks of the harvest season.
“Out of 25 years of farming, this crop year is No. 1 on my hit list,” he added. “I can’t forget it.”
Due to the rainy season South Texas is currently experiencing, next season is off to a good start as far as moisture is concerned, but input prices are another story. “Obviously, there’s time between now and planting,” Bessent said.
“However, given where prices sit compared to input cost, there are many producers concerned about what they’re going to do next year. There are opportunities to take advantage of, but much is still uncertain.”