A widespread problem of premature defoliation and physiological cut out of cotton has occurred in the Emerald Irrigation Area since the early 1980s. The problem was particularly severe in 1988 and 1989.

The performance of CSIRO varieties and new lines are evaluated each year in a series of regional trials, known as the Australian Cotton Cultivar Trial (ACCT).

The importance of Heliothis has grown with the advent of resistance in H.armigera to various pesticides.

The Environmental Audit of the Australian cotton industry was a bold initiative at a period in time when the industry was under severe pressure from well organised environmental lobby groups.

Verticillium wilt of cotton is caused by a fungus (Verticillium dahliae) that infects the host plant via the roots and colonises the vascular system.