"The catches have been so minimal that in most areas they've quit fishing," Louisiana Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain said.
Strain told WWL's Tommy Tucker that crawfish farmers by and large have no product to sell, but it's not for a lack of trying.
Read MoreThe months-long battle against hundreds of wildfires across Louisiana has made clear that the state is ill-prepared for hotter, drier summers producing multiple simultaneous blazes that ravage forests, imperil communities and stretch the state’s firefighting capabilities beyond the limit.
That’s the message state Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain is sending to lawmakers as he lobbies for a substantial boost in funding for Louisiana’s largest wildfire fighting agency.
Read MoreThe Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s (LDAF) Seed Testing Laboratory announces that seed sample test results can now be viewed online. Results have always been available upon request; they’ve just made it easier to access the information.
Read MoreLouisiana Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain plans to ask the Legislature for $43 million to beef up firefighting equipment and personnel after the state suffered its worst wildfire season in a century, wiping out 62,000 acres of mostly forestland.
Read MoreLouisiana Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain will ask the Legislature for $43 million to beef up firefighting equipment and personnel after the state suffered its worst wildfire season in a century, wiping out 62,000 acres of mostly forestland.
Read MoreOn November 21, 2023, inspectors with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s (LDAF) Brand Commission arrested 60-year-old Anthony R. Allen of Batchelor, Louisiana, for illegal possession of stolen things. The arrest was the result of a warrant from Pointe Coupee Parish.
Read MoreAs 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."
Read MoreLouisiana 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).
Read MoreThe Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s (LDAF) Livestock Brand Commission will host its next saddle microchipping event on Thursday, November 9, from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. It will be held at the State Fair of Louisiana located at 3701 Hudson Avenue in Shreveport, La.
Read MoreThe Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s (LDAF) Livestock Brand Commission will host its next saddle microchipping event on Thursday, November 9, from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. It will be held at the State Fair of Louisiana located at 3701 Hudson Avenue in Shreveport, La.
Read MoreLouisiana 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.
Read MoreWhen 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.”
Read MoreOn October 23, Ammarian D. Reed of Tallulah, La., was arrested for livestock theft by inspectors with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s (LDAF) Livestock Brand Commission. The arrest was the result of warrants in both Madison and Richland parishes.
Read MoreOn 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.
Read MoreThe State Fire Marshal’s Office has reported a brush fire in the Alexandria area that has caused at least one death.
SFM said the brush fire was reported to authorities around 1:30 p.m. in the 6100 block of LA 488, or the Twin Bridges Road area.
Read More
