Cotton Gin, Buttonwillow,CA

 

This was originally posted in a saree group in early December.

Right after I had called my friend to ask if she would accompany me to Tehachapi today I dialed up one of my patients, Efrain, to ask if the activity at the cotton ginning facility where he works is over for this season. In October, just before I left on vacation to India, I had visited the cotton fields to witness the harvesting. At that time I thought I am going to miss the next process in the cycle which is ginning and packing because I will be in India in November. Can’t tell you how excited I was today when Efrain said they are currently working on it! He said they work Monday to Saturday. He would be there today until 6 pm. I was like a kid who was suddenly promised a ticket to the evening show at the circus in town 😂

As soon as my friends dropped me off at home returning from Tehachapi, I rushed in to change from the irkal to a saree that fitted better into context with the venue I was going to visit next. Within 10 minutes I was on the road to Buttonwillow which is about 25-30 miles from my home. It was 2:06 pm when I called and told Efrain I was on my way. 

He was surprised when I called him at 2:30 that I’m waiting outside. It was a huge site with many different buildings spread across and I wasn’t sure where I was supposed to go. Besides the two days of rain had created quite a sticky mess (chikhal) to drive over. My car was skidding as I tried to move. He came in his truck and waved out for me to follow him to one building. He was surprised I had come alone. I wonder what he had imagined, whether I would come with a brigade of reporters or photographers? 🤔😃. 

Even before we entered the facility I saw trucks bringing in those yellow cotton modules that I had seen in October on the cotton fields as the harvesting was being done. ( please refer to my post from October 15 this year. Check the photos in the comments to see how those modules were created ).  The trucks unloaded these modules one by one on an intake platform. From here they would be taken in and fed into the large ducts for the ginning process.

We walked inside the building and I must say it proved to be one of the most intriguing field trips I’ve ever had. Inside that huge building was a network of large ducts, some of these ducts passing underground, and machinery that included devices to alternately humidify and heat/dry the raw cotton harvest as it passed through a series of gins that separated the lint( cotton fibers) from the seeds. The facility housed 30 gins plus subsequent machines to separate leftover lint from the seeds. In essence, the process involved washing and purifying the cotton to separate the seeds from it and pack the lint into bales. At the end of the cycle the cleaned lint( cotton) was divided into a measured quantity, passed into a packaging unit, it’s weight recorded after packaging, a small sample from each of this unit taken out before it was packaged to be sent for “grading”. The grading determines the price. Each packaged unit was assigned a label with a specific number/ batch and its weight. This is one bale. Usually a bale weighs about 490-500 lbs. The corresponding sample was also given a label to match with its bale. While one bale was getting ready to be packaged, weighed and labeled, the previous one began to roll forward on the belt to exit the facility through a window where a truck would pick it up and drop off to a trailer on site. Once the trailer was loaded to full capacity it would  be taken to the warehouse of the broker who in turn would disperse it to buyers across the globe. 

While the cleaned lint is being packaged, the separated seeds are directed into their own ducts that ran underground and across to a shed that was easily a quarter mile from this main ginning building. Once the underground ducts emerged out under the giant shed they would then ascend high near the roof and through manually operated vents the seed would be seen pouring onto the floor. Facing these giant piles of cottonseed were other set of ducts whose job was to pump cool air. The seeds need to be stored at cool temperature to prevent catching fire. They are highly combustible. 

Some of the cleaned seeds are reserved for replanting into the fields in the next cycle which will begin in spring. Major portion is sold for making cottonseed oil which in turn is used in industries such as Frito Lay which make potato chips and other packaged snacks. This factory is not too far from the ginning facility.

Besides the lint and the seeds, there is a lot of trash that is a byproduct of the harvested cotton. This trash is disposed through separate ducts that also run underground to empty outside in its own pile. The trash is also sold, mostly to dairy producers who use it as bedding for cattle. 

From November through December 12 employees work 12 hours and another set of 12 work the other 12 hours for 6 days a week. After the entire load of cotton harvest is processed and packed into bales and sent to the brokers, rest of the year it is only four employees working on oiling and servicing the equipment for the next season. Efrain is one of these four. His brother is another. They are both supervisors who alternate the 12 hour shifts with their team of 12 employees. This evening Efrain would leave by 6 pm and his brother would come in and work till 6 am. 

At the end of the detailed, personalized tour that he gave me I showed Efrain the saree I was wearing. When I told him this was made out of cotton from India he gave me a look. Do you own a gin in India? Are you taking pictures here so you can go replicate it there ? 😂. No dear, I have a job, and I have patients to care for , I said pointing to him and we both laughed aloud. I simply came to learn and understand what goes on in Kern County about which I’ve been so ignorant about all this time! 

The saree I’m wearing truly deserves a post for itself! If you go back to my October 15th post I had mentioned that there are innumerable varieties of wild cotton across the globe. However refinement is not economically sustainable for most of them. A few of them are rendered process friendly by genetic research and breeding. This is one indigenous variety from Karnataka that needs special mention.

I am one of few lucky ones to lay my hands on this saree which comes from the first batch of sarees to be made from a variety called brown cotton or Kandu cotton in Kannada. It is inherently brown in color. It was cultivated by a farmer in Karnataka and was used for hand spun, hand woven products like towels or fabric until recently. Some of its virtues are conserving water by eliminating repeated washings and also eliminating need to use chemical dyes due to its natural brown color. It is also a source of sustainable livelihood due to primary role of women in its making. This was the first time this raw material was experimented in making sarees. The weaving was done in West Bengal. Jamdani techniques have been employed in the weaving of motifs. The motifs on my saree remind me of paper clips or a bit like the saguaro cactus of Arizona. I paired with a blouse made out of another hand spun fabric that also has handwoven jamdani motifs . The joy of this fabric is hard to describe. Simply and naturally it connects you to Mother Earth. I went about my tour of the ginning facility in this saree like a breeze, climbing up and down narrow ladders and later enjoying the countryside drive, stopping several times to admire the beauty of the fields and almond groves that had taken up autumnal colors and stood in pristine rows against the grey skies while the sun was getting ready to take leave for the day. 

From Karnataka to Kern County…..cotton filled my day and heart ❤️ 

Don’t miss the pictures in the comments later that show you the different processes I have described in this post. Efrain took my pictures at the facility but once out of there I was left with no options but to practice my selfie skills. How I miss my photographer, especially for the back shots.

Talking about my dear photographer, I’m including a picture in this saree taken while I was in Pune last month. This one was taken by him. Did not have appropriate post at that time to share it.

Thinking of it, I managed to cover the entire cycle of cotton in Kern County this year starting with preparation of the soil, planting of seeds, flowering stage, harvesting, ginning and packaging into bales to transport outside for brokers and buyers. Refer to the old posts for the previous stages.