To market cotton, you must first find out the quality of the cotton. This is done through a process called "classing". Cotton gets its marketing loan rate from the quality of the cotton. Two samples are taken from each ginned bale. Those samples then  go to the USDA Cotton Classing office in Abilene, Texas. This process generally takes around 5-7 days to complete.

 

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Official USDA cotton quality classifications measure three factors: grade, staple, and micronaire. Grade depends on the color, trash content, and preparation (smoothness) of the sample. Staple is the average length of the individual fibers. Micronaire is a measure of fiber fineness and maturity.