Excellence in safety awards were earned by almost a hundred member gins of the Southern Cotton Ginners Association in 2012.

Winners were honored at a special luncheon held in conjunction with the Mid-South Farm and Gin Show at Memphis.

“Our ginners and their employees continue to do an outstanding job of maintaining a high level of safety in their operations,” says Larry Davis, SCGA safety director.

“Nobody wants to have an accident or injury, and management and employees are conscientious in doing everything possible to have a safe workplace. They’re always striving to do better, as is exemplified by the large number of gins qualifying for the top awards.

“We had six gins that qualified for the Diamond Award in 2012, which means they scored at the very top for five consecutive years. That’s quite an achievement.”

Gins are evaluated throughout the year on a wide range of safety criteria, including on-site inspections.

Scoring ranges for the awards are: Bronze 94-96.9 percent; Silver 97-99.5 percent; Gold 99.6-99.7 percent; and Platinum 99.8-100 percent (Diamond winners must score in this range for five years in a row).

Winners in the various categories were:

Diamond — Cotton Growers Inc., Dell, Ark.; Pendleton Gin Co. Inc., Dumas, Ark.; Tanner & Co., Frogmore, La.; Silver Creek Gin Co., Holly Bluff, Miss.; Longtown Gin, Mason, Tenn.; and Zion Gin Co., Brownsville, Tenn.

Platinum — Adams Land Company, Leachville, Ark.; GPS Gin Co. Inc., Portland, Ark.; Griffin Gins Inc., Helena, Ark.; McClendon Mann & Felton Gin, Marianna, Ark.;
McGehee Producers Gin, McGehee, Ark.; Round Lake Co-op Gin, Grady, Ark.; and Shawnee Village Gin LLC, Joiner, Ark.

Newellton Gin Company, Inc., Newellton, La.; Tensas Co-op Gin, Inc., Newellton, La.;
Tri-Parish Gin, LLC, Lettsworth, La.; Mattson Gin Inc., Mattson, Miss.; Quito Gin Company, Itta Bena, Miss.; Vance Gin Co. Inc., Clarksdale, Miss.; and Yazoo Planters Gin Co., Yazoo City, Miss.

Bernie Farmers Gin, Malden, Mo.; Farmers Union Gin & Warehouse Co. Inc., Senath, Mo.; Portageville Farmers Gin, Portageville, Mo.; Sandy Ridge Cotton Co. LLC, Malden, Mo.; Stokes-Mayberry Gin Co., Inc., Malden, Mo.; Vanduser Gin Co., Inc., Vanduser, Mo.; and White Oak Gin, White Oak, Mo.

Burlison Gin Company, Inc., Burlison, Tenn.; Espey Gin Co., McLemoresville, Tenn.; and Farmers Gin of Humboldt, Humboldt, Tenn.

Gold — Childress Gin & Elevator Co., Inc., Monette, Ark.; Langston Enterprises, Inc., Blytheville, Ark.; McClendon Mann & Felton Gin #3, Brickeys, Ark.; McNutt Gin Inc., Boyce, La.

Avon Gin Inc., Avon, Miss.; Columbus Gin, Shaw, Miss.; Doolittle Gin Inc., Gore Springs, Miss.; H.B. Hood & Sons Gin, Gunnison, Miss.; Hi Grade Gin Corp., Winona, Miss.; Midway Gin of Yazoo Cty. Inc., Benton, Miss.; Vaiden Farmers Gin LLP, Vaiden, Miss.

A.C. Riley Cotton Co., Inc., New Madrid, Mo.; Bootheel Cotton Co., Matthews, Mo.; Cardwell Cooperative, Inc., Cardwell, Mo.; D.G. & G. Inc., Sikeston, Mo.; McCord Gin Company, Gideon, Mo.; Crockett Gin Co. LLC, Maury City, Tenn.; and Crockett Mills Gin LLC, Crockett Mills, Tenn.

Silver — Kiech-Shauver-Miller Gin Co., Monette, Ark.; Langston Gin Company, Luxora, Ark.; New Gin Co., Coy, Ark.; Service Cooperative Gin Co. Inc., Marvell, Ark.; Tillar Gin & Fertilizer Co. LLC, Tillar, Ark.; Willow Gin LLC, Wilson, Ark.; Catavoy Cotton Gin, LLC, Jonesville, La.; Valley Gin Inc., Shreveport, La.

Big Creek Gin Co., Inc., Lyon, Miss.; Calhoun County Gin Inc., Calhoun City, Miss.;
Greenwood Gin Inc., Greenwood, Miss.; Blakemore Cotton & Grain LLC, Campbell, Mo.; Caruthersville Gin, Caruthersville, Miss.; Dalton Cotton Company, Senath, Mo.; Graves Kennett Gin, Kennett, Mo.; Peach Orchard Gin Co. Inc., Gideon, Mo.

Arp Cotton Gin Co. LLC, Ripley, Tenn.; Cairo Farmers Gin, LLC, Alamo, Tenn.; Hickory Valley Gin, Hickory Valley, Tenn.; L & H Gin, Alamo, Tenn.; Phoenix Gin Co., Tiptonville, Tenn.; and Turnpike Gin, LLC, Brownsville, Tenn.

Bronze — Alvin Samuel Gin Inc., Paragould, Ark.; Bay Gin Co., Bay, Ark.; Black Oak Gin Co. Inc., Black Oak, Ark.; Delta Cotton Cooperative, Inc., Marmaduke, Ark.; Dixie Gin of Poinsett Cty. Inc., Trumann, Ark.; Good Luck Co-op Gin, Marvell, Ark.

Portland Gin & Warehouse, Inc., Portland, Ark.; R.D. Hughes Gin Company, Blytheville, Ark.;  RHM Gin & Whse. LLC, Marked Tree, Ark.; Senter & Sons Gin LLC, Osceola, Ark.; Winchester Gin Company, Winchester, Ark.

Gilliam Gin Co. Inc., Gilliam, La.; Joes Bayou Gin Inc., Lake Providence, La.; Lagniappe Cotton Gin, LLC, Hamburg, La.; Bowdre Gin Company, Robinsonville, Miss.; Four County Gin Inc., Calhoun City, Miss.; Gaddis & McLaurin Gin, Bolton, Miss.

Issaquena S. Washington Gin Inc., Glen Allan, Miss.; Producers Gin of Belen, Marks, Miss.; Tunica Gin Corp., Tunica, Miss.; Vardaman Farmers Gin Inc, Vardaman, Miss.; L. Berry Gin Company, Holland, Mo.; Mahan Gin Co, Parma, Mo.; Richardson Gin, Inc., Marston, Mo.

Bemis Gin & Warehouse Co., Jackson, Tenn.; Cotton Unlimited - Tibbs Gin #2, Brownsville, Tenn.; Farmers Friendship Gin, Inc., Friendship, Tenn.; Tennessee Gins & Warehouses, Covington, Tenn.; and Yorkville Gin Company, Yorkville, Tenn.

Most improved — Union Gin Co. Inc., Brownsville, Tenn., won the Most Improved Award for the Southern Cotton Ginners Association; Graves Gin Corporation, Rector, Ark., won the Most Improved Award for Arkansas; Deer Creek Gin, Sicily Island, La., won the Most Improved Award for Louisiana; Cowart Gin Co. Inc., Charleston, Miss., won the Most Improved Award for Mississippi; and 4-Way Gin, Senath, Mo., won the Most Improved Award for Missouri.

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