Texas Cotton to Endure Another Dry Year

The U.S. cotton industry has seen its fair share of roller coaster movement over the last several years. Drought conditions since 2020 have proven to be the biggest challenge, particularly in Texas. And a look at the U.S. Drought Monitor shows many Western and Central Texas counties are still dealing with severe to exceptional drought.

These two regions produce around 4.5 million acres of cotton, mostly on non-irrigated land. Above-normal temperatures and drastically low precipitation has proved disastrous for cotton acres. While El Niño is bringing more moisture to many parts of the U.S., its’ effects could be too-little-too-late for the parched Texas cotton fields for the 2023 growing season.

Read more on cotton production and drought forecasts here.