Strong Report Card for Cotton Research and Promotion Program
April 25, 2022 A recently concluded independent third-party evaluation gave high marks on the effectiveness of the Cotton Research & Promotion Program (the Program) over the long-term (1986-2019) and over the last five years (2015-2019).
The 1996 Farm Bill requires The Cotton Board to conduct an independent evaluation of the effectiveness of the Program every five years. The recent analysis found strong, positive returns to cotton producers and importers as a result of the Program.
Some of the most significant long-term findings from the report showed the Program:
- Increased retail cotton fiber demand by over 14%, which is equivalent to 2.74 million bales per year.
- Caused U.S. farm prices of cotton to be about 13% higher, on average.
- Generated $11.2 billion in farm-level returns.
- Returned $6.4 dollars to cotton producers for every dollar they invested in the Program.
- Returned $17.4 dollars to Importers for every dollar they invested in the Program.
- Enhanced cotton yields and reduced U.S. production costs by an average of $7.60 per planted acre.
In addition, Program expenditures on cottonseed research and promotion increased nominal cottonseed prices received by producers by an annual average of $12.23 per short ton and increased cottonseed disappearance by about 266,000 short tons per year over the period 1993 to 2019.
“The report concludes that the cotton checkoff program has enhanced cotton and cottonseed demand, augmented U.S. cotton yields and production as well as cottonseed prices, generated a positive return to both cotton producers and importers, reduced the dependence of cotton producers on government farm programs, and benefited taxpayers,” says Jimmy Webb, a Leary, GA cotton producer and current Cotton Board Chairman. “Additionally, due to investment in agricultural research, the checkoff program has reduced costs per acre planted of upland cotton – primarily for fertilizer, chemicals, fuel, and custom operations.
“We believe this is a very positive report and is a strong objective measure of the returns generated by the Program,” he adds.
The Cotton Board contracted with Forecasting & Business Analytics, LLC – a firm with significant experience in analyzing checkoff programs – to conduct the evaluation. Following months of analytical work, a draft written report and oral summary were delivered to The Cotton Board for peer review. The report has since been approved by USDA.
The full report is available on The Cotton Board’s website under the “Stakeholder Transparency” tab. Digital burst-type videos illustrating some of the evaluation results can be found on The Cotton Board YouTube channel.
Based on information provided by The Cotton Board
GET THE NEWSLETTER TODAY!
