Despite losses of $1.69 billion in Louisiana agriculture and forestry from the statewide drought, only portions of Iberia Parish are affected and as farmers strive to overcome it, industry continues to move into the region.
Sugarcane profits in Iberia Parish dropped by 30% because of the drought affecting much of the region, according to local farmer Ronnie Gonsoulin.
Read MoreRecently, big corporate candy executives have been pushing a false narrative that there is a domestic sugar shortage. According to a recent report from the United States Department of Agriculture, not only are these reports totally false — there is actually a plentiful supply of sugar, assuring American families they will once again enjoy another holiday season with all their favorite treats.
Read MoreThe Mississippi River levee in front of retired sugarcane farmer George “Scrap” Hymel’s Gramercy, Louisiana home has been the site of a Christmas Eve bonfire for 53 years. Hymel saw his last bonfire in 2022; he passed away on December 30, 2022.
But for the Hymel family to not participate in the annual tradition of building the holiday bonfire was out of the question.
Read MoreGiambri’s candy canes are made almost entirely of sugar — and all are made by hand.
To find out more, we went to the land of Mardi Gras and jazz bands. Why? Because Louisiana is also the home of sugarcane. We drove an hour and a half west of New Orleans to visit one farm.
Read MoreThe worst drought Louisiana endured in decades brought concerns of significant declines in sugar tonnage this year at Cora Texas Manufacturing Co., but prospects now look brighter.
Rain and mild weather in mid-October fueled growth of sugarcane and a better outlook for the 2023 harvest, said Charles Schudmak, chief operating officer/secretary for Cora Texas in White Castle.
Read MoreThe USTR’s reallocation of 223,740 tonnes, raw value, of unused raw cane sugar TRQ allocations for 2023-24 was one of the earliest reallocations on record and should help ease tight raw cane sugar supplies. US raw cane supply is tight because of drought- reduced output in Louisiana and Mexico and a sizeable TRQ shortfall mostly due to the Philippines designating all of its production for domestic use this year.
Read MoreAs of December 1, Louisiana upland cotton production is forecast at 210,000 bales, down 30,000 bales from the November 1 forecast and down 148,000 bales from last year. Yield is expected to average 877 pounds per harvested acre, down 125 pounds from last month and down 27 pounds from 2022. Harvested acreage is estimated at 115,000 acres, down 75,000 acres from 2022.
Read MoreSugarcane farmers, like the rest of Acadiana, have been experiencing a record-breaking drought.
Eddie Lewis III, the operator of Eddie Lewis Cane Farm, LLC, said that the harvest season had started rough. He said he started harvesting in September and October, and the cane was coming out 15 to 20 tons to the acre, which is below average.
Read MoreThis year’s Louisiana sugarcane crop will fall short of last year’s record crop, but it isn’t as bad as many believed when the harvest started at the end of September. LSU AgCenter reporter Craig Gautreaux has this report from south Louisiana.
Read MoreThanksgiving heralded in the holiday season and most folks will be celebrating the traditional autumn rituals by expressing gratitude for their good fortune.
Part of Louisiana’s fall tradition is the sugarcane harvest which is proceeding as it often does through December and into January. It’s 100+ days straight of harvesting, trucking and milling cane 24-7 until it is all made into raw sugar. It’s hard work. Producers do not have the luxury of taking a day off during harvest because the perishable crop needs to be brought in a safe, and timely manner.
Read MoreThe US sugar market appears in a state of flux amid uncertain supply (both domestic and global) and demand expectations for the 2023-24 marketing year that began Oct. 1. Prices remain historically high.
Read MoreEnvironmentalists are pushing back against a proposed jet fuel plant in St. James Parish.
The company says it will use solar power to turn sugar cane into fuel and bring hundreds of jobs.
Read MoreCharles Maurice Gravois, Sr., age 95, of Vacherie, Louisiana passed away on October 25, 2023. He was born in Vacherie on June 23, 1928, to Ozane J., Sr. and Louise Brazan Gravois and was the youngest son in a family of 13 children. He was raised on Blackberry Farms, and in turn raised his family on the same farm.
Read MoreThe American Sugar Cane League, along with the American Sugar Alliance, congratulates Representative Mike Johnson (R-LA-04) on his election as Speaker of the House – and as the first Speaker from Louisiana.
As Speaker of the House, Speaker Johnson has the critical task of shepherding legislation impacting the lives of all Americans – including a Farm Bill that supports American farmers and ranchers who provide us with the safest, most abundant and affordable food, feed, fiber, and fuel supply in the world.
Read MoreLSU AgCenter sugarcane breeder Collins Kimbeng has received a $288,690 award over three years from The John Deere Company to study remote sensing and artificial intelligence for supporting sugarcane breeding and forecasting sugar yield.
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