The occurrence of bark in cotton across the U.S. cotton belt is examined and the problem in the Southwest, especially in the Texas High Plains, is documented. As a percentage of U.S. cotton reduced in grade due to bark, the Southwest region and High Plains area averaged about 76% and 46%, respectively, over the 18-year study period. Results indicate that the average annual losses are not large in relation to the total value of cotton produced; the estimated annual loss averaged about 1%. However, the annual variation is great, with the high annual loss over the time period being more than 3% of the value of the crop.