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Record Price for California Pima Cotton Set for Crop Harvested in 2004

Posted on: Wednesday, 28 September 2005, 18:00 CDT

By Dennis Pollock, The Fresno Bee, Calif.

Sep. 28--VISALIA -- Cotton cooperative Calcot announced Tuesday a second consecutive record-setting price for pima cotton, $1.37 per pound for last year's crop, despite global competition.

"Can't complain when we get the highest price in history for pima," said Jerry Gragnani, a Fresno County grower, upon hearing the announced price at the cooperative's 78th annual meeting. "This was during a hard marketing year with a big world crop."

Pima is a longer-fiber premium cotton. A payment of 77.20 cents was announced for the shorter-fiber acala cotton.

Citing a record world crop, Calcot President Bob Norris told an audience of about 200, "Considering the size of the crop, cotton prices were somewhat more stable than I think many expected. It was a stark contrast to the tremendous volatility of the previous season."

Norris pointed out that record yields and slightly higher acreage led to a large crop in the Valley in 2004.

"Unfortunately," he said, we were surprised by early fall rains, which lowered grades on some of your production."

This year's crop has not been "an easy crop, not a cheap crop," said Charles A. Fanucchi, a Bakersfield grower and Calcot chairman.

Challenges have included higher costs for fuel, a wet and cool spring that delayed planting and maturation, searing days in summer and insect pressures.

Dan Gragnani, Jerry's father, said their crop had been "about 10 days late, but it looks like it caught up." Jerry Gragnani said this year's pima crop "looks good, if the weather will allow us to get it out before it gets damaged [by rain]."

Both Fanucchi and Norris talked of the importance of the next farm bill, expected in 2007, to the cotton industry. "The Farm Bill of 2002 was good to us, good to consumers and easy on the taxpayer," Fanucchi said.

Norris said he expects the next bill will not include a federal program that shores up prices for U.S. brokers of cotton to help them compete in a global market against producers from other nations who sell at lower cost. A dispute with Brazil over U.S. imports brought that issue to a head.

Norris cited other challenges that included energy prices, a growing dairy industry that has enticed some to grow other crops, crops such as almonds that command high prices and urban development that has replaced farmland.

Fanucchi cited some successes that included adding nearly 50 new members to the 1,400 who belong to the cooperative. This year, the cooperative which has represented growers in California and Arizona, added 18 growers with 15,000 acres in south Texas.

Fanucchi said the cooperative's development of the 235-acre Palm Bluffs project in northwest Fresno, on the site of what had been a cluster of cotton warehouses, is ahead of schedule. Completion had been expected in 2009, but has moved up to 2006.

Calcot's sales for 2004-05 totaled $418 million.

Outside the meeting room, the cooperative had tables with displays of towels made from cotton produced by its growers. A federal grant enabled the co-op to have the towels made, and they began selling in about 40 stores in 12 states in August.

Jarral Neeper, vice president of marketing, said initial plans called for making white or ivory towels only.

"Then we found out you can't go to any retailer and say, 'Do you want to buy my towels? They're all white."

Instead, they were produced in 17 colors. There's a higher-end category with a price of about $10 per bath towel, and another with a cost of $15.

Among satisfied customers were Charlotte Fanucchi, wife of the cooperative's chairman, who said they make great gifts: "They're very fluffy and very absorbent, people love them."

Among stores carrying the towels is Olcott's, a gift shop in Bakersfield.

Additional information on the towels is available by calling (800) 582-3955 or (661) 327-5961.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Fresno Bee, Calif.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Fresno Bee

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