COCHRAN COTTON FELLOWS PRAISE TRIP TO U.S.

UNCLAS COTONOU 000911

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/W:DBANKS
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO USTR LAGAMA
DAKAR FOR MORRISON AND HANSON
USDA/FAS FOR LINDSEY ITLE AND DEBBIE NIP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAGRBTIOBEXPETRDBN
SUBJECT: COCHRAN COTTON FELLOWS PRAISE TRIP TO U.S.



1. Summary: The six recently returned Conchran Cotton Fellows from
Benin were full of praise for their experience in the U.S during a
meeting with the Ambassador on November 23, 2007. They cited the
excellent orientation they received from Lindsey Itle and Debbie
Nip, the courses provided by professors from Auburn University and
Tuskegee University, and the visits to cotton farms and ginning
factories, as highlights during their trip. The participants
returned with ideas on how to improve soil fertility in Benin and
productivity in Benin's ginning factories. Post identified a
possible commercial opportunity for U.S. manufacturers of cotton
ginning equipment after their trip. End Summary.

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Excellent Programming
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2. All participants began by thanking Post for the experience they
had in the U.S beginning with the orientation provided by FAS Staff
in Washington. The participants in the soil fertility program were
struck by the coordination they observed between universities,
research institutes, and cotton producers in the U.S. They remarked
the U.S. system worked well in transferring innovations from a
university setting to application in the field and commented on the
need for Benin to set up a similar process. They also found it
useful to learn how U.S. farmers use irrigation and the renewal of
organic matter in their fields to maximize their yields.


3. The participants in the cotton ginning program found their
sessions with the technicians who developed the equipment used in
Benin's cotton ginning factories particularly useful. They have
already used the contacts they made during the trip to solve
problems affecting their ginning equipment. They also commented on
the technological innovations they saw during factory visits
including a machine called the "Saw Saver" which measures the
temperature of the cotton as it is ginned to avoid fires. According
to the participants, Benin's cotton factories lack this equipment,
which in turn results in fires which have a measurable adverse
impact on the factories' productivity. The same participants noted
they appreciated the explanation during the program of U.S. policies
in regards to cotton subsidies and international trade negotiations
and left with a better, and more sympathetic, understanding of U.S.
policy.

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Let's Sell More Equipment!
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4. Comment: The participants in the cotton ginning program
commented repeatedly on the technological innovations they saw in
U.S. ginning factories. They appreciated the systems used in the
U.S. to monitor the heat and humidity of cotton during processing
(noted above),the security systems in place at U.S. cotton ginning
factories, and the methods used to store cotton both at the factory
and in the field. U.S. companies supply much of the equipment used
in Benin's cotton ginning factories. The companies running the
ginning factories do not buy new equipment often and lack regular
contact with the U.S. suppliers. A U.S. company which made the
effort to market their supplies, especially ones which constitute
technological innovations, to Beninese cotton companies would
encounter a ready market. End Comment.

BROWN