Nathan Goldman has a 1983 map showing 105 cotton gins in Arizona.

Only seven — including the Chandler Ginning Company he manages — are left today.

A newly released federal plan to boost domestic cotton production may not change this reality.

United States Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins unveiled the plan May 28 on a Marana farm. 

But the Great American Cotton Plan offers meaningful steps to shore up the Arizona industry that remains, growers and processors said.

“It’s about trying to make ag relevant in hard times to stay viable,” Goldman said. “We’re heading in the right direction.”

How Arizona cotton has changed

Arizona’s cotton industry has contracted markedly since its peak in the 1950s.

One of every two acres of irrigated farmland were planted in cotton at the time, producing roughly a million bales of the white, fluffy fiber each year.

Now, Arizona ranks 12th of the 17 states that grow cotton in the U.S., producing about 285,000 bales — or about 5% of what Texas, the top-producing state, churned out — in 2025.

But a niche market has developed for Arizona’s cotton seed, which is known for its size and quality, and heavily used across cotton-producing states.

And while Pima cotton production has fallen steadily over the last two decades, Arizona still grows more of this longer, softer and stronger fiber than most other states.

The cotton industry contributes about $322 million to the state economy and supports nearly 1,500 jobs, a 2025 University of Arizona analysis concluded.

If more gins close, they won’t return

Global demand for cotton is up slightly over the last 20 years. But its market share has taken a beating as polyester and rayon have risen in popularity.

It’s estimated that 60% of clothing is now made from synthetic fibers.

As a result, most cotton fabric production has moved overseas, where cheap labor sustains the ring-spun mills that produce the softest, strongest yarns.

According to a USDA fact sheet, the number of cotton gins nationally has declined 80% since 1980, and the number of textile mills has dropped 70% since 2002.

Few in the cotton industry expect large-scale production to reshore because of the labor costs.

But production incentives could help protect the domestic mills and gins that remain.

“When this infrastructure goes away, it’s never coming back,” Goldman said. “It’s too expensive to start up and sustain.”

Arizona doesn’t have any commercial cotton mills, and like most states, it exports most of the cotton it grows.

But local gins are still needed to strip seed from lint, which is then cleaned and bailed for shipping.

“There’s a limit — about 200 miles — to where growers can send cotton to a gin economically,” Goldman said.

What USDA is doing about it

USDA aims to increase domestic demand for cotton via existing marketing and awareness campaigns.

Rollins also supports the Buying American Cotton Act, which offers tax credits to those that sell products made from American grown or manufactured cotton.

The Great American Cotton Plan aims to increase domestic production by prioritizing loans to processors and manufacturers and increasing payments to help modernize textile mills.

It touts efforts to find new international markets for American cotton, including a recent deal to export more cotton to Indonesia.

And it notes that Congress recently increased reference prices and base acres for the first time in decades, a move that could boost payments for farmers when market prices drop below government-guaranteed levels.

“Taken together,” Rollins said in Marana, “the actions under these four pillars will make our cotton supply stronger, more affordable and more secure.”

Water, labor remain chief concerns

Arizona Cotton Growers president Cassy England praised the plan’s comprehensive structure.

It addresses the full supply chain, she said — from growers and processors to those who sell and market American cotton products at home and abroad.

Jeff Larson, a fifth-generation cotton Graham County cotton grower, agreed.

He said setting reference prices that better reflect market realities will help Arizona growers, as will efforts to bolster demand for their cotton.

“We have to compete against Brazil, now the world’s largest exporter, so we’re already at a disadvantage,” he said. “But what we have going for us in Arizona is that we do grow quality cotton.”

Larson participated in a roundtable before Rollins announced the plan, where growers emphasized their concerns about uncertain labor and water policies.

It doesn’t matter how much is done to grow markets or offer loans and incentives, they said. Without enough water, there will be nothing to ship beyond our borders.

Farm Bureau members echoed similar sentiments during a recent roundtable with Luke Lindberg, USDA’s undersecretary for trade and foreign affairs.  

Rollins asked for additional information about Arizona’s water issues and promised to follow up.


Joanna Allhands writes about water, land use and other issues important to the Arizona Farm Bureau. Reach her at joannaallhands@azfb.org.