Cotton Production Costs and Returns: Eastern Uplands

 

Cotton production costs and returns per planted acre, excluding Government payments, Eastern Uplands, 2022-2024 1/
Item 2022 2023 2024
  Dollars per planted acre
Gross value of production:
Primary product: Cotton $970.07 $858.73 $578.50
Secondary product: Cottonseed $188.29 $160.14 $136.70
  Total, gross value of production $1,158.35 $1,018.87 $715.19
Operating costs:
Seed $110.71 $116.63 $112.74
Fertilizer  2/ $265.05 $209.77 $179.72
Chemicals $191.02 $185.94 $148.24
Custom operations $19.92 $20.92 $21.78
Fuel, lube, and electricity $23.33 $20.14 $18.85
Repairs $42.76 $44.37 $44.81
Ginning $96.12 $102.83 $92.98
Purchased irrigation water $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Interest on operating inputs $9.14 $17.80 $14.89
  Total, operating costs $758.05 $718.40 $634.01
Allocated overhead:
Hired labor $7.93 $8.36 $8.59
Opportunity cost of unpaid labor $30.38 $32.05 $33.12
Capital recovery of machinery and equipment $154.33 $164.81 $171.89
Opportunity cost of land $84.98 $86.21 $91.47
Taxes and insurance $15.26 $15.94 $16.91
General farm overhead $16.51 $17.10 $17.27
  Total, allocated overhead $309.39 $324.47 $339.25
Total costs listed $1,067.44 $1,042.87 $973.26
 
Value of production less total costs listed $90.91 ($24.00) ($258.07)
Value of production less operating costs $400.30 $300.47 $81.18
 
Supporting information:
Cotton Yield: pounds per planted acre 1,080 1,094 955
Price: dollars per pound $0.90 $0.79 $0.61
Cottonseed Yield: pounds per planted acre 1,748 1,769 1,545
Price: dollars per pound $0.11 $0.09 $0.09
Enterprise size (planted acres) 1/ 967 967 967
Production practices: 1/
Percent dryland 94 94 94
Percent irrigated 6 6 6
 
1/ 2022-2024 estimates developed from survey base year, 2019.
2/ Commercial fertilizer, soil conditioners, and manure.

Last Updated on 11/20/2025