Registration Begins for 2020 Beltwide Cotton Conferences

Registration begins September 17 for the 2020 Beltwide Cotton Conferences (BWCC), set for January 8-10 at the JW Marriott in Austin, TX.

The BWCC, coordinated by the National Cotton Council (NCC), annually brings together university and USDA researchers, Extension personnel/agents, consultants and industry sales/support personnel. The forum helps U.S. cotton industry members tailor new products and production/processing systems to their operations to allow them to better maximize efficiency.

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Both meeting registration and housing reservations will be available September 17 on the BWCC’s website. The site – which includes a link to BWCC proceedings from 2005-2018 – will be continuously updated with program details and other information related to the 2020 conference.

The 2020 BWCC begins at noon on January 8 with the Cotton Consultants Conference, which is open to all attendees. Topics selected by the consultant community for consideration and discussion during the half-day program include:

  • An entomology session to discuss timely topics ranging from Bt resistance to test results of Bollgard 4
  • A review of water restrictions, including the status of aquifers across the Cotton Belt
  • An update on precision agriculture technology
  • A discussion of EPA’s role in the plant protection chemicals’ review and registration processes, and
  • A briefing on a multi-state potash study.

The 10 BWCC cotton technical conferences, which provide updates on research and current/emerging technology, will meet concurrently beginning January 9 through noon on January 10. For example:

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  • The Engineering-Systems Conference will feature presentations on sustainability and contamination prevention
  • The Economics Conference will cover topics such as crop insurance, disaster assistance and trade.
  • The Ginning Conference will continue to focus on efficient processing/maintaining quality fiber, as well as updates regarding ongoing ginning research, ginning efficiencies, new equipment and lint contamination prevention/research. (Multiple committees of the National Cotton Ginners Association (NCGA) will also meet the afternoon of January 8. A final schedule of those meetings will be posted on the NCGA website.)

Other topics to be covered in the technical sessions are results from breeding and variety trial results, continuing research focused on the relationship between plants and water, and cotton’s competitive advantage over synthetic fabrics.

Registration costs for the 2020 BWCC before December 16 are:

  • $200 for NCC/Cotton Foundation members, university and USDA researchers, Extension personnel, associations and consultants
  • $500 for non-U.S. research, Extension, associations, and consultants
  • $400 for non-NCC/Foundation members, and
  • $80 for students.

On-site conference self-registration kiosks will be available 24 hours a day beginning the evening of January 7. During the conference, NCC staff will be available to help attendees needing assistance with registration and name badges.

 

Based on information provided by the National Cotton Council

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