Farming Video | Can You Finally Make Money Growing Cotton in 2026?

00:00:00 We're talking about cotton cost of production and can you finally make money in the business of growing cotton? 00:00:05 Turns out we might be able to. I'm with Brian Adams, he's a guy with volunteer ag services here in Tennessee 00:00:10 and Chad Harrison with extreme Ag. All right. That is a non-con Grower. That's a non-con grower. But you used to be Yeah. In your part of the world. I mean, 00:00:17 I mean, we've made a living. I mean, our farm was raised on cotton, our farm, living on cotton. 00:00:20 I mean, that's what we had to do. A lot Of stuff got paid for by a Lot of stuff got paid for, you know, 00:00:24 I can remember when we, I've sold personally sold soybeans for $4 and 50 cents. 00:00:28 Looks like we may be heading there again. But anyway. Yeah, I mean, You said, uh, off camera, 00:00:33 there's a thing in the one big beautiful bill. Yep. And this is legislation. We're not getting political, 00:00:37 but let's face it, in agriculture we're impacted by regulation and legislation that impacts us and taxation, et cetera. 00:00:42 Yep. You said there might be a new price floor at 84 cents. Yep. And if that's the case, we 00:00:47 might see some more acres of cotton. Can you make money growing 84 cent cotton, get back in the cotton business? It's, 00:00:52 It's possible. It's very possible. We're looking at some, some issues in our area now with, with wheat. 00:00:57 I, I can't get rid of wheat. Yeah. You know, I can grow wheat, but I can't get rid of wheat. You know? Um, so there's, there's problems there. 00:01:02 You've got canola coming into our area, some, you know, and, and we need these other things. 00:01:06 I need cotton in our rotation, but we can't make it math out because I've invested, I'd say I or Henderson Farms, Stewart 00:01:14 and I have invested our money into grain bins. Yep. And it's either you put a million dollars in grain bins or you're gonna put a million dollars 00:01:19 in the cotton picker. Yep. You Know, so you can't get rid of weed. You're saying you got a problem, 00:01:23 you gotta keep it in your rotation or you actually have a problem physically unloading it, Physically unloading it, finding 00:01:28 A buyer. It is just finding a buyer in the market. Like the problem is like right now, I'm sitting there with a hundred thousand bush of wheat 00:01:35 and they don't really want it right now. And then I got a big corn crop coming. You gotta do something With it. I 00:01:39 gotta do something with it. Yeah. You gotta get out. So Cottonwood help you because it's harvested. 00:01:44 It's harvested here beginning of October. Yep. North Alabama probably about the same. And you Dump it on the end row and they come pick it up. Yep. 00:01:49 You just bail it up and it doesn't have to be housed. It doesn't have to be in a green bin. So you no Logistics that matters. Let's 00:01:55 talk about cost of production. You don't have to have grain bins for it. You have to have a very expensive picker. 00:01:59 But you said it's tough to make a living when these prices have been what substitute. Yeah. I 00:02:03 Mean, yeah. We're, we're 60 cents. I think I talked to some growers last week. We talked about you get eight 00:02:09 and a half, nine, 9 cent equity. So you're right at that 60 cent mark with a 52 cent loan value. 00:02:14 So my understanding, and I please understand that I have not fully dove off into it, but I believe it's an 84 cent floor loan value's moving up 00:02:22 55 cents, I believe from 52, which we were at 50 just a few years ago. So that's a positive. That's subsidizing. 00:02:29 I mean, that's what's gonna keep us competitive in a world market where, where you deal with the Chinas, the Indias, 00:02:34 the, the South American countries and, and the way that they dump cotton onto the world market and drive crop 00:02:39 Down dis force the market, it hurts us. So 60 cents, you can't make money at 84 cents. You got a different set of ball and that's 84 cents a pound. 00:02:46 You think that this field behind us, for instance, here in this part of western Tennessee would make 1200 pounds. 00:02:51 Yeah. So I, I mean, I think, I think, you know, when I quit growing cotton last year, I've grown cotton on hends farms since 2006. 00:02:59 Yep. Okay. And that's when we switched over to grain. At that point, I can remember telling my dad, if I could get $3 for corn, I'd plant every acres and corn. 00:03:06 Yep. Okay. So you gotta look at it. But at the cost of production was half of what it is now. Yep. Yeah. Now it's just like cotton was then, you know, 00:03:13 I mean, we was trying to make a living on a bale of cotton. Yep. We need to make a bale. 00:03:16 I was making a living on 600 pound of cotton. 700 pound of cotton was a big deal. And I was trying to make $50 an acre. Yep. 00:03:22 So, I mean, the numbers hadn't went up. And it's just like farming right now. It's high stakes gambling. We added another zero Yep. 00:03:27 To the end of it. Right? Yep. Absolute. So the new is, is 1200 the old 600. Absolutely. I think it's, you're 00:03:34 Talking 1200 pounds. The old 600, 1200 has got to, I I think it's gotta be at 1200. I think that mid eighties is a great place for a floor. 00:03:42 It gives enough room to make a little of money. Mid eighties price then price wise. Yep. Let's talk about cost of production. 00:03:47 'cause you guys went into this. So, uh, cotton requires a lot of work. Our Fred, Matt Miles says cotton looks to die every day. 00:03:53 So you gotta spray it seven, eight times. Yep. Until, until it gets to bark on it. Yeah. So when it comes outta the ground, 00:03:58 it's trying to die. Yeah. When It comes outta the ground, it's, it's looking for a reason to die. 00:04:01 And your goal is not to give it one, but cost production is gonna vary with area you get out West Texas, 00:04:05 those guys don't have nearly as much money in it. Uh, even as you move back to Coastal Bend, Texas versus up here, tech fees are different in areas. 00:04:13 Um, you know, here tech fees Are laying rents difference, Tech fees for seed, the technology within the 00:04:17 Seed. So, so Matt, Matt Miles pays a little more for cotton seed. For a bag of cotton seed than what Chad 00:04:22 and I would, uh, it's about 110 bucks an acre. Roughly. Yeah. For cotton seed here. Um, so you got one 10 for that. 00:04:28 Call it a hundred dollars in fertilizer. And look, we can argue about that all day. Some guys say, oh, I can do it for 50. 00:04:32 Some guys say I can't do it for less. One 50 and eight passes with a sprayer gets expensive. You got a lot of time, a lot of 00:04:36 Money. You got minimum you got eight passes post squaring in plant bugs in most parts of the world in the south. That's 00:04:44 And Al That's, that's right. There's, there's good years and bad years. That $40 a pass. No, 00:04:49 God no, no, no, no. 10 bucks. Yeah, 10 bucks passed probably. Okay. But we to make a sprayer payment, 00:04:54 You got passes, you got a couple of, you got a couple of, uh, And your time, your time's not free 00:04:59 Herbicide. Yeah, no, you got herbicide applications. But coupled with that, we talked about, you know, you've gotta have hormones. 00:05:05 You, you gotta have hormones and chemical to manage because cotton is a perennial managed as an annual. You have to try to stop vegetative growth 00:05:12 and promote reproductive growth. And that's done with it. It also gives us opportunity 00:05:16 to make f passes that we can pull Absolutely. Dry program. Absolutely. Absolutely. So it's, it's a give and take. 00:05:20 That's correct. So let's talk about the money real quick. 'cause I don't want be, I wanna be here all day. 00:05:23 I wanna make sure we get our people the information we promise. We're gonna talk about cost of 00:05:26 production as cotton Makes sense. At 84 cents on 1200 pounds. I think that's roughly a thousand bucks. Makes sense. 00:05:30 If you make money a thousand dollars an acre. I, I, yes, I think I can, but you know, but the thing is, I think cotton 00:05:36 and corn go hand in hand in the south of what it costs to produce it. Right. I mean, the fertility's higher on the corn, 00:05:41 but sprayings more on the cotton. Yep. So, I mean, I, I think it's a hand in hand deal. And if we can grow corn 00:05:47 and cotton in a rotation, it's every, it's a, it don't matter from 67 to now, you're gonna make 200 more pounds of cotton. 00:05:54 Yep. When you can run it. Cotton corn. Cotton corn. Absolutely. You know, so, I mean, they go hand in hand. Cost of production should be similar. 00:06:00 And, and I'll go back to saying that, that the big difference there is is, is in a Chad situation, he doesn't have a cotton picker anymore. 00:06:08 So he is gotta pay somebody to pick it. That ain't cheap, that's a problem. I mean, that, that's a real problem. 00:06:13 But those guys that are picking it for you, I mean they got a million dollars in a machine and then, you know, they gotta pay to keep it up. 00:06:18 Uh, a lot of my growers around here, you know, they look to pick cotton for other people to help justify 00:06:23 Cost Justify Machine. So 84 cent per pound cotton, you think we're gonna see more cotton acres because it can finally make money. 00:06:28 I I think you will see a much more steady bottom on cotton acres around here for sure. 00:06:33 Uh, you'll see more cotton Eggers, I think than this year. And we're off a little because we 00:06:36 had a really poor plant season. But again, We need it in the rotation. I need Henderson farms. I mean, I need it at Henderson Farm. 00:06:42 We've been growing 20 years. Makes your life. I mean it's going. What would cotton do there? I'm gu I mean, I wouldn't say guaranteed, 00:06:48 but I am guaranteed two to 300 pounds even in a dry year. Two, 300 pounds from a grain rotation. 00:06:53 Chad's coming back on cotton. You predicted more cotton? It might be, it might be Henderson Chad's in a partnership. 00:06:58 'cause he cannot say that Chad's coming back on cotton. All right. His name's Chad Henderson with Extreme Ag. His name's Brian. Adam here with the Volunteer Ag Services. 00:07:05 I'm Damien Mason with extreme Ag talking about cotton and profitability. It looks like we're gonna see some more cotton in 2026. 00:07:09 State tuned. I'd look Coming back with it. We'll keep covering this, but you know what, cotton t-shirts, jeans, towels, and draws 00:07:16 and don't ev Exactly. 00:07:18.135 --> 00:07:18.805