Earlier this year, USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward announced she would retire after 18 years at USA Rice, 16 of them in her current role, and almost four decades advocating for U.S. agriculture and forestry in Washington, DC, and around the world. Peter Bachmann, USA Rice vice president of policy & government affairs since 2019, was named her successor by the Board of Directors on Tuesday.
Read MoreUSA Rice recently hosted a delegation of six Central American retailers and distributors from Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Costa Rica for a week-long trade mission through rice country in the mid-south.
The tour included two main stops in Memphis, Tennessee, and Lafayette, Louisiana, where participants met with USA Rice members and industry representatives.
The LSU AgCenter is partnering with several universities and countries on a $22 million award from the U.S. Agency for International Development aimed at improving lives around the world by making cereal crops more readily available to those most at risk for hunger and malnutrition.
Read MoreOn Wednesday, Congressman Mike Johnson (R-LA) was elected as the 56th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
The fourth-term congressman from Shreveport has been serving as the vice chair of the House Republican Conference since January 2021 prior to ascending the highest post in the House.
Read MoreIn true Louisiana fashion, we go from one festival to another! Last weekend, Crowley, “The Rice Capital of the World,” hosted the 86th International Rice Festival to celebrate the rice industry. This weekend, a few miles away in Thornwell, “The Yellow Rail Capital of the World,” plays host to the 15th Annual Yellow Rails and Rice Festival.
Read MoreOnce again, this historic city of 12,000 in southwest Louisiana became the center of the rice world last week with tens of thousands gathering here to celebrate the great grain with four days of music, competitions, and more for the 86th International Rice Festival (IRF). This year's theme, “Rice…A Farming Family Tradition,” was chosen by Festival President Kevin Spell, and it proved exceedingly prescient.
Read MoreIt's a time filled with live bands, carnival rides and of course, festival food. It's also a time to remember the struggles that rice farmers faced this year with the drought and high temperatures effecting rice crops and the industry.
KATC spoke with one family who has been rice farming for 6 generations and hopes to pass on the love of rice and stress the importance of it for the future generations to come.
Read MoreThis past weekend, the International Rice Festival held its 86th Annual Queen and Honoree’s Ball to kick off the week of the festival and honor those in the local rice industry presiding over this year’s festivities.
Audrey Spencer, a lifelong educator and resident of Crowley, will serve as the Children’s Parade Grand Marshall on Friday afternoon, and Christine and Dwayne Fulton, with Falcon Rice Mill of Crowley, will serve as the Grand Parade Marshalls for Saturday’s Parade.
Read MoreThis month’s 2023/24 U.S. corn outlook is for reduced supplies, lower feed and residual use and exports, and smaller ending stocks. Corn production is forecast at 15.064 billion bushels, down 70 million on a cut in yield to 173.0 bushels per acre. Corn supplies are forecast at 16.451 billion bushels, a decline of 160 million bushels from last month, with lower production and beginning stocks.
Read MoreIn less than two months, the rice industry will descend on Indian Wells, California, for the 2023 USA Rice Outlook Conference at the family-friendly and beautiful Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa. The Early Bird registration deadline has been extended to Friday, October 20. The USA Rice room block at the Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort and Spa is full, but a nearby overflow hotel is being added. Please check the website for more information.
Read MoreStep into the lush landscapes of Louisiana, where agriculture is the backbone of the community. This state is teeming with a variety of crops, from towering sugarcane to sprawling rice fields. This article focuses on the top crops that add serious value to Louisiana’s economy and fill our dinner plates with Southern goodness.
Read MoreThe U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives have officially recognized the 10th anniversary of the USA Rice-Ducks Unlimited Rice Stewardship Partnership, a trailblazing conservation program that offers aid to rice producers addressing water quantity, water quality, and wildlife habitat on their land.
Since its inception, the Rice Stewardship Partnership has impacted more than 800,000 acres of rice on over 1,000 farms.
Read MoreLast week, USA Rice Vice President Of Policy & Government Affairs Peter Bachmann and Ana LeFort, a rice trader for Supreme Rice Mill in Crowley, Louisiana, participated in a “first of its kind” conference here for private sector businesses from Cuba.
Nearly 100 business owners and entrepreneurs from Cuba representing the country’s burgeoning private sector participated in Expeditio USA No 1 to learn about opportunities to facilitate more trade with U.S. businesses.
Read MoreLate last week, the Prioritizing Offensive Agricultural Disputes and Enforcement Act was introduced in both the House and Senate establishing a joint task force on agricultural trade enforcement between the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and signaling more engagement with Congress and the private sector on the development of agricultural dispute priorities.
Read MoreCongressman Clay Higgins (R-LA), a staunch advocate for Louisiana's agricultural community, and Congressman Rick Crawford (R-AR) introduced the Prioritizing Offensive Agriculture Disputes and Enforcement Act. The bill identifies trade barriers to the United States agriculture exports and develops strategies to enforce violations of trade agreements.
The initiative enhances Congressman Higgins' ongoing efforts to support Louisiana's unique agricultural needs in the Farm Bill.
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