Posts in LDAF
Here's How Much Thanksgiving Dinner Will Cost You in Louisiana This Year

As Thanksgiving approaches, Louisiana residents may be in for a bit of a surprise when they check their grocery bills. Commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry, Mike Strain, is urging people to consider incorporating more locally sourced items into their holiday feasts.

"We want you to certify your celebration," Strain emphasizes. "Look for certified Louisiana products. Think about some pecans, Louisiana sweet potatoes – Yam right. And of course, it's got to be Louisiana rice."

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LDAFAvery Davidson
Louisiana is the First and Only State to Compete 2023 Soybean Harvest So Far

Louisiana was the first state to wrap up soybean harvest for the week ending Oct. 29, and remains the only state to have finished harvesting soybeans for the week ending Nov. 5, USDA reports.

Mike Strain, commissioner of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, says that heat and drought resulted in some poor yields for the state’s first batch of soybeans, averaging 10 to 12 bushels per acre (bpa).

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LDAF, USDA, SoybeansAvery Davidson
Ag Chief Talks About Challenges, Opportunity

Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain talked to a St. Mary Chamber luncheon audience Wednesday about one state department. But he might have taken a line from “A Tale of Two Cities.”

For Louisiana farmers and the Agricultural and Forestry Department, this can be the best of times and the worst of times.

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LDAFAvery Davidson
Explosive Wildfire Season Exposes Vast Training Gaps Among Louisiana Firefighters

When firefighters rushed from across the state to battle a massive wildfire in Beauregard Parish, a firefighter from Texas noticed something unsettling about his Louisiana colleagues: most of them had no idea what they were doing.

“They’d say ‘we’re just going to go hit it,’ and want to rush in,” said Taylor Lott, a volunteer firefighter in Beauregard who trained in wildland firefighting in his home state. “No, in the conditions we’re having and the fires we’re having, you can’t do that. There’s just a lot they didn’t understand.”

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LDAFAvery Davidson
Jackson Parish Issues Burn Ban

On Wednesday, October 25, 2023, starting at 8 AM, a burn ban will be in effect in Jackson Parish. The burn ban will prohibit all outdoor burning and will last until it is determined that the weather conditions are safe enough to lift the burn ban.

Violators of the burn ban may receive a $500 fine or face six months in jail. This ordinance does not apply to prescribed burns by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, by those trained and certified by the Department of Agriculture and Forestry.

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LDAFAvery Davidson
LDAF Launches New Website

After months of hard work and dedication, the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) invites visitors to explore its new website. The new site URL is www.ldaf.la.gov.

The LDAF designed the new website to offer the ultimate user-friendly experience with improved navigation and functionality while allowing stakeholders to see the full scope of services the agency provides to Louisiana.

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LDAFdon molino
Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Assesses Challenges of 2023 Ahead of 5th Term

The Louisiana open primary election, also known as a “jungle primary,” on Saturday [October 14], made it official - Mike Strain will serve a fifth term as Louisiana’s Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner. His reelection was already a foregone conclusion since he ran unopposed. Strain delivered an assessment, of sorts, on the challenges of 2023, while speaking before the Baton Rouge Press Club on Monday [October 16].

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LDAFAvery Davidson