Cotton Production Costs Vary Widely by Region, Yield, and Operation Size

Costs of producing cotton vary considerably among and within regions. The major factors affecting costs are yields and size of operation, measured by acreage or sales. Most of the differences in total economic costs, ranging in 1987 from $0.58 per pound in the Southwest to $0.85 in the Southern Plains, were due to variations in yield. Large operations were able to keep production costs down by taking advantage of technical efficiencies or economies of size.