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Cotton Closes Higher; Shows Promise

  Cotton Futures closed about 4-percent higher this week, (March delivery jumped 3 cents to 72.96 cents a pound before closing at 71.20) the highest level for a front-month cotton contract since February 2004, before hitting what's known as a limit-up level in electronic trading.

   "That's a good start," explains Mark Bagby of Bakersfield's CalCot Cotton Cooperative. "Cotton seems to be finally joining the fray after several other commodities began to see price hikes in the past few months."

Farm Equipment Boom

     A boom in farm-equipment sales has manufacturers scrambling to keep up with demand in the Midwest, although demand in California is not as strong.

Bakersfield Plant to Close

   The Dopaco plant on District Blvd will be closing its doors in March as the company consolidates its operations up north.

   The closure will leave about 75 people without jobs.

Farm Bureau Hosts Water Meeting: Shortages Likely

  With many California farmers facing water shortages ranging from 30 percent to 70 percent in the coming year, there wasn't a lot of optimism to be heard at a water issues panel discussion held at the California Farm Bureau Federation's 89th Annual Meeting.