Cotton
Cotton harvest 2017 is underway in the nation’s top cotton growing state, Texas.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is forecasting a big cotton crop in the United States this year at 12.2 million acres overall, a 21 percent increase from 2016.
Over the last several weeks, cotton prices have seen a decent run in prices. Ashley Arrington, founder of AgriAuthority, told AgDay host Clinton Griffiths cotton markets can be “dramatic at times, especially in relation to the July contract.”
USDA is forecasting a large cotton crop in the U.S. this year which could mean new growers coming online but the financial picture may hold some cotton acres back.
Cotton planting is on pace for 2017, just one point behind the five-year average in the nation’s top cotton producing states, according to the USDA.
The cotton market is on fire, taking a 180 degree turn from just two years ago. Cotton futures are seeing a big boost in recent days.
Farmers from 10 states are eligible to join a potential class action against Monsanto from dicamba drift damage. States include Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
Application training program aims to protect diversified crops in neighboring fields.
The USDA’s Prospective Planting report will give the industry a starting point on acreage for the spring planting season, and cotton is looking to win back farmers in 2017. Early estimates are predicting up to 1 million acres.
Cotton markets usually aren’t discussed at the AgDay agribusiness desk. John Payne of Daniels Trading is discussing the cotton rally and the opportunities to market the crop.