Ignoring Hot Bales Is Not Worth the Risk
October 17, 2025 Fire. It’s a hazard that growers, ginners, and their insurance companies are keenly aware of as harvest and ginning season begins.
During a presentation at the Southern Cotton Ginners Association summer meeting, Curtis Phillipy, Chief Executive Officer at Agriculture Guaranty, LCC, provided some reminders about the potential hazards involved in handling and storing hot bales.
Agriculture Guaranty provides comprehensive coverage to various cotton-related businesses including gins, warehouses, and merchant policies across the Cotton Belt.
“When it comes to hot bales, nobody knows what’s going to happen,” he says. “We (the insurance company) pay for modules in the field. We expect that. But what’s troublesome is the downstream if gins get a hot bale event. The National Cotton Ginners Association has their best practices for this. We’ve provided best practices for the gin, best practices for the cottonseed, and best practices for the warehouse.
“I believe ginners are all aware of what to do with hot bales,” he continues. “But you can’t tell me that those bales should go anywhere if there’s a hot bale event. I know, sometimes you might be trying to help that one farmer that you were ginning for. But if you put those bales in a warehouse, you just started a game of Russian roulette. We don’t know when that fire is going to break out.”
“Those bales never need to go anywhere. They need to be discarded, and we can help salvage them. It’s just not worth the risk of putting it in a warehouse.”
Phillipy shared a cautionary tale about a hot bale event that occurred 27 days after ginning. The fire began in the warehouse at 1:00 a.m. And by the time it was discovered, the warehouse was a complete loss.
“Some of this is the result of getting bigger and faster,” points out Phillipy. “Cotton goes through the gin faster. Things are happening quicker. We have new strapping. And in a fire situation, you may have 15 minutes before those straps are popping. You can’t be in there.
“In most cases, you have a sprinkler suppression system, not an extinguishing system,” he adds. “And at that rate of burn, once it breaks out, it’s 2000 degrees. You can’t send employees in there or the local fire department unless they have breathing equipment. In most cases, by the time they arrive, it’s just to keep the other buildings around it cool.”
Phillipy reminded ginners of the value that the National Cotton Council and National Cotton Ginners Association provide to the industry, as well as their network of colleagues across the Cotton Belt.
“Y’all are a tight group,” he says. “You talk to each other, and you learn from each other — the good things that happen, not just the bad. You’re innovative. You’re ready. And yes, there will be a better tomorrow.”
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