Source:  NCSU COLLEGE OF AG & LIFE SCIENCES, 10/22/20


“Cotton is a fascinating plant. All of us should be amazed that we wear products fashioned from bundles of single, biodegradable cells,” said Candace Haigler, NC State cotton fiber scientist. Haigler, a jointly appointed professor in the departments of Crop and Soil Sciences and Plant and Microbial Biology, was just announced as the first recipient of the 2020 Women in Agriculture Biotechnology and Genetics Award from Cotton Incorporated.

Improving U.S. Cotton
Haigler’s lab works to improve cotton fiber qualities to benefit us as consumers, our cotton producers, and the textile industry. 95% of US-grown cotton is from upland varieties – high yielding but with structurally different and economically less valuable fiber compared to its more refined cousin Pima cotton. 

Haigler’s lab was the first to characterize two, variable long fiber types in upland cotton – one broad and the other narrow. The broad fibers are quite different than those in Pima cotton and they contribute to the lesser quality of upland cotton.

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