P.I.E. Tour: West, Southwest Cotton Producers to Visit Mid-South
August 9, 2023 Fourteen cotton producers from the U.S. Cotton Belt’s West and Southwest regions will observe cotton and other agriculture-related operations in Louisiana and Mississippi Aug. 13-18 as part of the National Cotton Council’s (NCC) Producer Information Exchange (P.I.E.).
Since the program’s launch in 1998, more than 1,200 U.S. cotton producers have been exposed to innovative production practices in Cotton Belt regions different than their own. The P.I.E. program is sponsored by BASF Agricultural Solutions through a grant to The Cotton Foundation and is coordinated by the NCC Member Services staff in conjunction with local producer interest organizations.
The program aims to help participating producers boost their farming efficiency by gaining new perspectives in such fundamental practices as land preparation, planting, fertilization, pest control, irrigation and harvesting; and by observing firsthand the unique ways in which their innovative peers are using current technology. Participants are encouraged to ask questions of the producers they visit, as well as the other regional participants on the tour.
Tour participants are:
- Arizona – Brittney Carranza, Stanfield; and Matt Forbis, Casa Grande
- California – Todd Fernandes, Tulare; and Greg Riccomini, Bakersfield
- Oklahoma – Braden Cunningham, Hollis; Russell Isaacs, Turpin; and Austin Leverett, Altus
- Texas – Steven Acevedo, Lamesa; Chase Bubenik, San Angelo; Karson Davis and Tanner Heffington, both of Littlefield; Ryan Harlan, Bishop; Jeremy Jeffcoat, Smyer; and Alton Synatschk, Olton.
The tour begins in Louisiana on Aug. 14 at the Somerset Plantation in Newellton with an overview of black bear habitat, conservation practices, variable rate seeding and fertilizers, soil sampling program, and cover crops. The group will also visit the Panola Co., Ltd. office to learn about corn harvest and 60-inch cotton.
Aug. 15 will be spent in Lake Providence where they will tour the Port of Lake Providence and the Louisiana Cotton Museum. While in the area, they will tour Tap Parker Farms and learn about Bunches Bend and will also tour Panola Pepper Co. to see hot sauce production.
The tour moves to Mississippi on Aug. 16 with a visit to the Delta Council in Stoneville for an overview of operations and Delta cotton production. They also will tour the Delta Branch Experiment Station before taking individual tours with producers in that area.
The tour concludes on Aug. 17 with tours of row rice production at Silent Shade Planting Company in Belzoni and catfish production and processing at Simmons Farm Raised Catfish in Yazoo City.
The year’s second P.I.E. tour is scheduled for Aug. 20-25, when Southeast and Mid-South producers visit cotton operations in Texas.
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