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Good cotton production, but some quality issues in Arkansas

An extension economist with the University of Arkansas says tropical storms have affected the quality of cotton in the mid-south.

Scott Stiles says only a few thousand bales of good quality cotton had been harvested before Tropical Storm Francine moved through in September.

“Based on what we’ve seen so far, we probably lost 300 to 380 points or 3.8 cents per pound in quality losses from the heavy rains.”

Stiles says if adverse weather stays away, the Arkansas cotton crop could rival last year’s record yields.

“We had record yields in the state and a year ago in Arkansas. I think we could come close to that based on what we’re hearing from growers. The pounds of lint are still there.”

In its latest report, USDA is forecasting the Arkansas cotton production at 1.6 million bales, an increase from last year and a slight decline in pounds per acre.