Fieldprint Calculator: The Continuation of a Cotton Sustainability Study Analyzing Management Practices in Georgia.

Cotton has been an important commodity to Georgia since its introduction in 1733. Over the last few years cotton has been steadily losing market share to synthetic fibers in the garment industry – the largest end-user of cotton fiber. Although there are many reasons for this, one is the perception that cotton production is not environmentally sustainable. For the U.S. cotton industry to outcompete other cotton producing countries and increase its global market share, it must document the sustainability and environmental footprint of cotton production in the United States. The first goal of this research was to continue to use Field to Market’s Fieldprint Calculator to develop a baseline for the environmental footprint of cotton production in Georgia. The Fieldprint Calculator is a confidential, free online tool promoted as an educational resource for producers to understand how their management practices impact the sustainability of their operation. Georgia cotton growers were identified and selected from across Georgia’s cotton producing counties and represented the continuum of large, medium, and small cotton operations. Growers were interviewed and data they provided was assembled to populate the Fieldprint Calculator for at least 2 of their fields with multiple years of data. Data was collected, analyzed and used to develop an index of per pound resource impacts to produce cotton lint on land use, soil conservation, soil carbon, irrigation, energy, greenhouse gas emissions, and water quality. Indices from individual producers were compared and contrasted to the national and state averages provided in the Fieldprint Calculator. The second goal of this research was to develop two cotton production budgets. One budget based on conventional practices in Georgia, the second based on sustainable practices. With the current drop in cotton market prices, it is important to document the current cost of growing cotton in Georgia to be able to provide producers with valuable science based data that could influence their future management decisions. The development of cotton production budgets allow producers to see how different production practices can impact the total cost for growing cotton in Georgia as well as the sustainability of the commodity crop.