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TCP/TSSC meetings cover key cotton issues; address cotton research priorities
By Shawn Wade
Plains Cotton Growers
College Station, Texas, provided the backdrop for an informative set of meetings that brought Plains Cotton Growers representatives together with cotton growers from across Texas.
The PCG group participated in the meetings to discuss important cotton issues and hear updates on cotton research programs being directed by cotton producers through the Cotton Incorporated State Support Program.
The week started with a meeting of the Texas Cotton Producers organization. TCP is the statewide organization comprised of the nine regional cotton organizations representing producers in Texas.
TCP agenda items included: adoption of a 2004 operating budget, discussion of U.S. trade policy and its effects on cotton marketing and prices, boll weevil eradication, crop insurance, and reports on activities of the National Cotton Council and the Cotton Board.
A special guest at the TCP meeting was Dr. Ed Hiler, Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences and Head of the Agriculture Program at Texas A&M University. Dr. Hiler discussed issues involving cotton and the Agriculture Program at TAMU.
The TCP group concluded their meeting with a luncheon with members of the Texas Farm Service Agency and the Texas State FSA Committee.
One of the unique ways that cotton producers benefit from their Cotton Research and Promotion Program is the Cotton Incorporated State Support Program.
The State Support Program provides cotton growers across the nation the ability to direct the expenditure of CI research dollars in order to develop solutions for the key production and profitability challenges that they face.
The majority of this research addresses issues such as cotton marketing and economics, cotton breeding, genetic improvement, insect management, irrigation and fertilization management, weed control, production systems, as well as harvesting and ginning issues effecting harvest efficiency and crop quality.
Members of the Texas State Support Committee met on Dec. 10 and 11 to hear updates on the progress of research projects funded for the 2003 crop year. A total of 43 projects were reviewed during the two-day meeting.
Each year the Texas State Support Committee receives projects in six broad research categories: genetic improvement, pest control, fertilization/irrigation, production systems, harvesting/ginning, and marketing/economics.
For 2004 the Texas State Support Program has approved approximately $790,000 to fund projects covering the full range of research areas. The biggest adjustment for 2004 was a renewed emphasis on getting individual researchers working on similar issues to work together. The goal is to build closer working relationships between both research organizations and the individual scientists involved.
The Texas State Support Committee also finalized the time-line for soliciting proposals and approving projects for funding in 2005.
Date: 6/24/04
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