What Research Is Happening to Help Prevent Contamination of US Cotton?

US cotton is considered to have some of the lowest levels of contamination in the world. That reputation is expected by foreign and domestic mills. Despite this reputation, recently there have been complaints of serious contamination issues with US cotton from international mills. Of particular concern are plastic contaminants – plastic trash that collects in cotton fields, black plastic film used as mulch in fields, plastic twine typically used for baling, and yellow plastic film used for round module wrap. In September 2016, presentations on the current efforts by the US cotton industry to prevent cotton contamination were made in Latin America as part of Cotton Inc. Fiber Processing Seminars. Approximately 150 textile industry professionals from Mexico, Guatemala, and Peru attended. There were many questions with continued discussions outside of the sessions. As a result of the seminars, one spinning mill manager from Mexico has since traveled to visit the SW Cotton Ginning Research Lab to learn more about ginning and our contamination research. Similarly, this presentation highlights the current research efforts to prevent cotton contamination and highlights some of the issues brought out during the seminars.