NEW ORLEANS (AP) — U.S. cotton production is expected to drop to 13.5 million bales this year, down nearly a third from last year, after farmers planted fewer acres in favor of higher-priced crops and took a hit along the Gulf Coast from hurricanes Gustav and Ike.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s production forecast released Monday was down some from October as the harvest continued and farmers got a better sense of what was in their fields. The agency reported that just three states — Alabama, South Carolina and Virginia — expected to produce more cotton this year than last based on Nov. 1 conditions.

In Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, production is expected to be down drastically.

Louisiana, which felt the effects of both September storms, expects to produce 280,000 bales, 60 percent fewer than last year and its lowest level since 1946, as farmers abandoned tens of thousands of hurricane-damaged acres.

Production is expected to be half of what it was last year in Mississippi and down 3.2 million bales, or about 38 percent, in Texas.

Nationwide, production totaled 19.2 million bales in 2007.

The last two crop years have seen many farmers swap traditional cotton acres for corn or soybeans, which commanded better prices than labor-intensive, expensive-to-produce cotton.

This was the first year cotton wasn’t the major crop on Clint Tindall’s farm near Eupora. He said the decision was made to spread the risk among cotton, corn and soybeans.

The cotton benefited from timely rains some of his neighbors missed out on. And he expects his family will make some money this year.

‘‘But it’s just playing catchup’’ after a couple of drier season, he said. ‘‘It’s all going to bills because of the last two years.’’

A concern heading into the next crop year will be demand, said Gary Adams, chief economist for the National Cotton Council.

Already, demand in the U.S. retail market is down from last year, and it’s not clear how long consumers will remain cautious about their spending, he said. It’s also unclear how high fuel, fertilizer and other input costs will be for the next crop year — and how that will pencil out against commodity prices, he said.

If cotton prices don’t improve, Tindall expects to cut back further on his acreage. He cut back from 2,700 acres to about 900 this year.

If the situation drags on much lot longer, he worries what it will mean for small towns reliant on the cotton industry.

‘‘Cotton’s going from being a staple to the step child,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s a hard pill to swallow.’’