By Sam Irwin
American Sugar Cane League
The modern era of the Louisiana sugarcane industry began when the sugarcane growers and millers organized the American Sugar Cane League in 1922. At that time, the dreaded mosaic disease had nearly wiped out the crop. To save the industry, the sugar producers began to look for the best varieties and the best scientific minds to set the industry back on a sustainable course. Today, because of those prescient agricultural leaders, sugarcane remains a strong market force in the state because it has always recruited the best scientific and business talent from within and without to keep the industry going forward.