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Posted: 5:17 PM Oct 29, 2009
Rain & Drought Shrinking Cotton Gin's Profits
This week's rainy forecast is the last thing some local cotton farmers want to hear. However, the wet weather isn't just hurting cotton growers.
Reporter: Ashlea SigmanEmail Address: Sigman@kbtx.com |
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This week's rainy forecast is the last thing some local cotton farmers want to hear. For many of them it's already too wet to harvest and more rain won't help. However, the wet weather isn't just hurting cotton growers.
Though picturesque as they slide over the Brazos Valley, clouds on the horizon mean more trouble for Mid Valley Gin, near Mumford.
"For us, this is almost a perfect storm," said Steve Perrone, an employee at Mid Valley Gin.
A severe drought earlier this year hurt area cotton crops. Now, late fall rains are reducing quality and amount, and it's still too wet to harvest and bring to the gin.
"This year I don't know that there will be anyone who makes a profit," said Perrone.
Perrone has worked at Mid Valley for over 20 years. Normally, the gin runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, but not this year. According to Perrone, it's the worst cotton growing season he's ever seen.
"We worked 13 days in September and we've worked so far til the end of this month, we'll do 21 days," said Perrone.
Less cotton means fewer employees.
"We're just running one shift, so that means at least 10 people didn't get a job working here this year," said Perrone.
In the past, Mid Valley ginned all of it's cotton by November 1. Now, managers say it will be at least another 21 days before they can finish, if the rain stops.
Perrone said the gin will be lucky to break even this year but each day a farmer can't harvest, cuts into the gin's bottom line.
"The problem is with the rain, we don't even know how big the loss will be," said Perrone.
A reason folks at the gin will be keeping an eye on the sky.
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