Louisiana Flooding Destroys $14 Million of Rice

by the NAFB News Service

With more than 20 inches of rain in southwest Louisiana since last week, early estimates are that flooding has destroyed $14 million worth of the state’s rice crop.

That estimate remains “fully speculative,” however, as the full scope of damage will not become clear until the water recedes. Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain says “once the water recedes we’ll begin doing analysis” along with federal officials.

The U.S. Rice Federation says about 80 percent of the southwest Louisiana crop had been harvested before the flooding, but of the 20 percent still in the field, 20 percent of that would likely be lost due to the flooding. None of the rice mills in the state have reported flood-related disruption.