Comparison of Stacked - Gene and Glyphosate - Resistant Cotton Cultivars : Arkansas 2002

The number of transgenic cotton cultivars available for commercial production has increased greatly in recent years. Cotton producers now have multiple choices when choosing transgenic cotton cultivars. The choice of cultivar now dictates the insect and weed control programs that will or can be used. It is estimated that, in 2002, 55% of Arkansas’ cotton acreage was planted to a stacked-gene cultivar while an additional 27% was planted to a single-gene glyphosate-resistant cultivar (Anonymous, 2002). The University of Arkansas, in cooperation with Arkansas cotton producers, county agents, and industry representatives, has implemented side-by-side comparisons of Bt cotton cultivars to non-Bt cultivars each year beginning in 1996. In 2002, stacked-gene cultivars were compared to single-gene glyphosate-resistant cultivars. This article presents the economic results of those comparisons.