The fourth annual Cotton U event took place on March 28 in Lubbock, Texas. High Plains Journal partnered with Plains Cotton Growers Inc. to hold both Cotton U and the PCG Annual Meeting at the Overton Hotel. Over 260 attendees dotted the banquet hall as the event began. The annual meeting began with a report from Martin Stoerner, PCG president who gave an overview of the past, present and future of cotton in the High Plains.
Tyne Morgan, host of U.S. Farm Report, took the stage for an ag industry update. After Morgan’s industry report, Mark Messura, senior vice president of global supply chain marketing at Cotton Incorporated, presented a session on the current state of cotton marketing and future marketing opportunities in the fiber industry. During a complimentary lunch, attendees listened to keynote speaker, John Kriesel, a combat veteran and motivational speaker.
After the keynote speech, Cotton U got started with a farm partnership panel that was hosted by Morgan. Next, the attendees were given several breakout speaker choices, including a farm bill outlook session with Robbie Minnich, senior government relations representative at National Cotton Council of America; a weed management challenges session with Peter Dotray, Texas Tech University Rockwell Chair of Weed Science and joint appointment with Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center; a sustainable farming during drought session from Barry Evans, a Swisher County, Texas, farmer and the StoneX cotton marketing and hedging workshop.
After the breakouts, attendees were invited to a closing general session, which included a cotton production panel made up of cotton farmers across Texas and Oklahoma, discussing cotton farming in their regions. Finally, the attendees networked during a Cotton U social with other farmers, speakers and sponsors. Watch for more detailed coverage of Cotton U in future HPJ issues.
