Speakers named for Georgia Cotton Commission annual meeting in Tifton

TIFTON — A Georgia cotton and peanut farmer will be one of the three featured speakers at the Georgia Cotton Commission’s 12th annual meeting on Jan. 30.

J. Lee Cromley, a Brooklet grower who is a member of the Cotton Commission, will be joined by fellow program speakers K. Michael Tate, vice chairman of the National Cotton Council of America, and Bruce Atherly, executive director of Cotton Council International.

The commission meeting, which will be held at the University of Georgia Tifton Campus Conference Center, is in conjunction with the UGA Cotton Production Workshop by the UGA Research and Extension Cotton Team.

Officials said the production workshop will feature breakout sessions for information on the latest technical production strategies from researchers whose projects are funded by the Cotton Commission’s research program. The commission’s annual meeting will follow those breakout sessions.

Following the annual meeting, the commission is expected to host lunch where sponsors will be recognized and door prizes will be given away. The UGA Cotton Production Workshop breakout sessions will be repeated after lunch.

Cromley, in addition to serving on the commission, is vice president of the Southern Cotton Growers, which represents cotton growers throughout Georgia, Alabama, the Carolinas, Florida and Virginia. Cromley also is a board member for Bulloch Gin, Bulloch County FSA and Farmers & Merchants Bank.

A board advisor for the National Cotton Council of America, he is a graduate of the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and has been farming with his brother since 1983.

Tate is a cotton, soybean, wheat, corn and pumpkin farmer from Huntsville, Ala., who is vice chairman of the National Cotton Council of America, the trade organization for U.S. cotton production. He is the former president of the Southern Cotton Growers, former chair of the American Cotton Producers, a board member for Alabama Farmers Co-op and Staplcotn and a board adviser for Cotton Council International.

Atherley has been executive director of Cotton Council International since October 2015. Previously, he served as vice president for global marketing for Kao Inc., a Tokyo-based manufacturer of personal care and household products. He also worked for the William Wrigley Jr. Company as vice president of North American Confections Marketing, president and general manager of Wrigley Canada and managing director of Global Branding Services.

Prior to that, Atherley was vice president of retail marketing for the H.J. Heinz Company, president/CEO of Pet Life Inc., marketing director for Black and Decker and product manager of Cheerios for General Mills Inc.

The meeting, production workshop and lunch are open to anyone interested in the cotton industry. There is no charge to attend.

Pre-registration is requested to help with meal plans. Individuals can register online by visiting www.ugatiftonconference.org or calling (229) 386-3416.