Cotton field day planned in Trumann as acres projected to grow in 2022

Cotton acreage in Arkansas is on the rise in 2022 due to several factors. Input costs for cotton are slightly lower than for some other row crops grown in the state and commodity prices have been better than in recent years.

A cotton field day will be held at the Judd Hill Foundation Farm near Trumann on June 22. It will feature discussions on why sustainability is important not only to cotton farmers, but also to the brands that use American-grown cotton and their consumers. The farm is on Arkansas Highway 214, five miles south of Trumann in Poinsett County.

Field tours highlighting soil and water conservation research and field-scale soil health demonstrations will be held. The Global Sustainability Study 2021, conducted by global strategy and pricing consultancy Simon-Kucher & Partners, found significant global paradigm shifts in how consumers view sustainability and the associated generational differences in willingness to pay for sustainable products and services.

Globally, 85% of people indicate that they have shifted their purchase behavior towards being more sustainable in the past five years, the study found.

“Sustainability encompasses so much. It’s soil and water conservation, but it also means finding ways to keep farmers and those that use their products in business,” Bill Robertson, extension cotton agronomist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture said. “That’s what we’ll be demonstrating and discussing during this field day.

Training and enrollment opportunities for the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol will be offered to farmers and consultants on laptops after lunch. Cotton acreage is projected to be up about 8% this year in the state to about 520,000 total acres.

“Farmers, crop consultants and others interested in learning more about sustainably produced cotton are encouraged to attend,” he said.

The agenda includes:

• Marty White and Jesse Flye, producers at Judd Hill, will discuss their experiences with conventional and conservation systems including cover crops;
• Adam Chappell, producer and president of Arkansas Soil Health Alliance, will discuss regenerative practices;
• Updates from the Soil Health Institute and the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol will focus on the importance of practices to improve soil health, and how to document our practices to improve our transparency and build consumer confidence;
• Hank Reichle, president and chief executive officer of Staplcotn, will discuss what manufacturing brands desire from farmers to better meet the needs of consumers;
• The Better Cotton Initiative and BASF will discuss the Better Cotton and e3 Sustainable Cotton programs.

For more information, contact Robertson at 501- 425-0549 or by email at [email protected].