Cromley Elected 2024 Cotton Council International President
February 16, 2024 Lee Cromley, a Brooklet, GA cotton producer, will serve as Cotton Council International’s (CCI) president for 2024.
CCI is the National Cotton Council’s (NCC) export promotion arm and carries out programs in more than 50 countries under the COTTON USA trademark.
Cromley and other CCI officers were elected at CCI’s board meeting held as part of the NCC’s 2024 Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL. Steve Dyer, a Cordova, TN merchant, will serve as CCI chairman.
“As CCI President, I’m excited to see firsthand how CCI promotes the export of our U.S. cotton crop to important overseas markets and builds lasting relationships with our customers,” Cromley says. “As ‘The Cotton the World Trusts,’ we want to become the cotton that commands the highest premium of any cotton in the world, and I’m confident that CCI will get us there through their innovative programs such as COTTON USA SOLUTIONS and our industry’s U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol.”
Cromley was the 2022 Farm Press/Cotton Foundation High Cotton Award winner for the Southeastern States. He is a sixth-generation farmer and operates Cromley Farms with his brother, Charley. He farms 2,500 acres of cotton and peanuts and has harvested more than 40 crops.
He has served as chairman of the Southern Cotton Growers; a board member for the American Cotton Producers; and a director on the NCC and CCI boards. He has also served on the board of the Georgia Cotton Commission.
Other CCI officers elected were:
- First Vice President – Carlo Bocardo, a cooperative official from Bakersfield, CA
- Second vice president – John C. King, III, a merchant from Helena, AR
- Secretary – Gary Adams, Cordova, TN
- Assistant Secretary – Bruce Atherley, Washington, DC
- Treasurer – Richard Gaona, cotton producer from Roby, TX.
Elected as CCI directors were:
- Richard J. Lindsey, ginner from Centre, AL
- Larry Black, ginner from Roscoe, TX
- Mike Quinn, manufacturer from Sanford, NC
- Donny Lassiter, producer from Conway, NC
- Mark Nichols, Producer from Altus, OK
Re-elected as 2024 CCI directors were:
- PRODUCERS – Philip F. Edwards, Smithfield, VA; Barry W. Evans, Kress, TX; John F. Lindamood, Tiptonville, TN; Matthew R. (Matt) Hyneman, Jonesboro, AR; and Paul (Paco) Ollerton, Casa Grande, AZ
- COTTONSEED HANDLER – Aaron Pena, Harlingen, TX
- MERCHANTS – Matt Dunbar, Memphis, TN; Nick Kastle, Corcoran, CA; Neeraj Rana, Cordova, TN; Wesley Rentz, Greenville, SC; and Beau Stephenson, Richardson, TX
- COOPERATIVES – Frederick Barrier, Greenwood, MS; Donald Robinson, Garner, NC; and Kevin Brinkley, Lubbock, TX
- WAREHOUSE – Vance C. Shoaf, Milan, TN
- MANUFACTURER – James (Jim) Martin, Gastonia, NC
Information from the National Cotton Council
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