Local Meat Capacity Program--USDA
This program supports independently owned meat and poultry processing businesses with funds to provide more and better processing options for local livestock producers by modernizing, increasing, diversifying and decentralizing meat and poultry processing capacity, including support for rendering.
Processing Expansion Projects will fund grants from $100,000 up to $5 million to increase the processing and/or rendering capacity of privately, cooperatively, non-profit, or Tribally held processing facilities.
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USDA Announces May '23 Lending Rates For Agricultural Producers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced loan interest rates for May 2023, which are effective May 1, 2023. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans provide important access to capital to help agricultural producers start or expand their farming operation, purchase equipment and storage structures or meet cash flow needs.
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USDA Offers Producers Rental Incentives & Longer Term Options
Agricultural producers and landowners with certain expiring Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) contracts can receive additional rental incentives and extend that land’s role in conservation for another 30 years. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has opened the signup period for its Clean Lakes, Estuaries, And Rivers enrollment (CLEAR30) now through July 31, 2023.
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Louisiana Milk Production Report: April 2023
Louisiana milk production during the January - March 2023 quarter was 30.0 million pounds, down 9 percent from the same period in 2022 but up 20 percent from the October - December 2022 quarter. The average number of milk cows on farms during the quarter was 8,000 head, down 1,000 head from the same period last year but unchanged from the previous quarter.
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USDA Announces Funding Availability to Expand Meat and Poultry Processing Options for Underserved Producers and Tribal Communities
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the availability of up to $125 million through two new grant programs that will create more options for meat and poultry farmers by investing in independent, local meat and poultry processing projects that increase competition and enhance the resiliency of the food supply chain.
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Advisory Committee On Minority Farmers
The Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement (OPPE) is seeking nominations for individuals to serve on the Advisory Committee on Minority Farmers (“Advisory Committee”). The Advisory Committee consists of 15 members who are expected to serve a 2-year term and may be reappointed for an additional two terms.
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USDA Announces 2023 Cotton Loan Rate Differentials
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Commodity Credit Corporation today announced the 2023 crop loan rate differentials for upland and extra-long staple cotton which are applied to the crop loan rate to determine the per bale actual loan rate.
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Louisiana Crop Progress and Condition: April 2023
According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service in Louisiana, there were 4.4 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending Sunday, April 16, 2023. Topsoil moisture supplies were 0 percent very short, 1 percent short, 73 percent adequate, and 26 percent surplus.
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USDA Announces Grassland Conservation Reserve Program Signup for 2023
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that agricultural producers and private landowners can begin signing up for the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) starting today and running through May 26, 2023.
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Funding Opportunity-Louisiana Conservation Delivery Technical Assistance
The Louisiana NRCS, an agency under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is seeking support from natural resource conservation partners to provide outreach promoting NRCS programs that enhance conservation delivery in Louisiana.
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USDA Asks Americans to Protect Plants by Looking for Invasive Pests in April
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is declaring April 2023 Invasive Plant Pest and Disease Awareness Month (IPPDAM). This national outreach month is dedicated to highlighting the impact of invasive plant pests and diseases on plants nationwide and informing Americans how they can help reduce their spread. IPPDAM aims to raise public awareness about the threat and how U.S. residents can help protect U.S. resources from hungry pests.
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USDA Announces April '23 Lending Rates For Ag Producers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced loan interest rates for April 2023, which are effective April 3, 2023. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans provide important access to capital to help agricultural producers start or expand their farming operation, purchase equipment and storage structures or meet cash flow needs.
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Louisiana Prospective Plantings: March 2023
This report contains the results from the 2023 March Agricultural Survey. Louisiana corn producers intend to plant 510,000 acres, up 13 percent from the 450,000 acres planted in 2022. Upland cotton acreage intentions are at 130,000 acres, down 33 percent from the 195,000 acres planted last year.
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USDA Announces '23 marketing Assistance Loan Rates For Wheat, Feed Grains, Oilseeds, Rice & Pulse Crops
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) today announced the 2023 Marketing Assistance Loan rates.
Marketing Assistance Loans provide interim financing to producers so that commodities can be stored after harvest when market prices are typically low and sold later when market conditions may be more favorable.
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USDA Cracking Down on Disclosure of Foreign Land Purchases
he Agriculture Department has doubled the number of staff tracking foreign land purchases and is taking another look at past transactions after a three-year gap in the department’s imposition of disclosure penalties, Secretary Tom Vilsack said Thursday.
The department assessed no penalties for violations of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act Violations between 2015 and 2018 due to low staffing levels in the office tasked with enforcing the law, which requires foreign investors to file a form with the Farm Service Agency detailing their land acquisitions and dispositions.
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