Louisiana rice farmers are certainly having a sense of deja vu as this year’s harvest comes to a close, as they’ve seen consistent, near-daily rainfall that has hampered their operations.
In the spring of 2021, steady rains caused farmers to have to delay planting rice, fertilizing fields and applying other chemicals.
Read MoreThe week of August 21st brought many of you excessive rain. For others, you have been suffering a year of severe drought. Some have faced both. We are asking USDA for help.
We want you to know that your Farm Bureau is aware of these situations and has been working to secure a disaster declaration from USDA for these events.
Read MoreLouisiana corn for grain production is forecast at 71.8 million bushels, down 15 percent from the August 1 forecast and down 31 percent from 2021. Based on conditions as of September 1, yield is expected to average 165 bushels per acre, down 10 bushels from last month and down 18 bushels from last year.
Read MoreLouisiana is in the early phase of a grant program to expand broadband internet services to rural communities in the state, yet established companies in the industry have taken steps to limit competition in these underserved areas. Moving forward, it appears some major telecommunications companies are backing down from this fight — and will have fewer chances to do so in the future.
Read MoreLet’s talk about the weather. Even if you’re a climate change skeptic, you cannot deny that weather patterns have affected your life in some way in the past five to 10 years.
Here in Louisiana, for example, many experienced unprecedented flooding in 2016. Then, in 2021, we were hit with deep freezes, Hurricane Ida and the third-wettest year on record.
Read MoreA free waterfowl habitat workshop—Where are the Ducks? will be offered on October 4, 2022, at the Lincoln Parish Library in Ruston, Louisiana. Special guest presenter is Jim Ronquest, Vice President of Development at Drake Waterfowl, former producer and co-host of RNT-V, and 2006 Duck Calling world champion.
Read MoreThe Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is celebrating a successful breeding season for the endangered whooping crane. LDWF biologist Sara Zimorski says eight more chicks have reached the fledgling stage in south Louisiana that’s out of the fifteen that hatched.
Read MoreThe first thing to know about buying crawfish at H-E-B is that it's a grocery store, which means it stocks crawfish in multiple forms, each one giving you a different experience. If you're talking about buying frozen crawfish, you're not going to find anything H-E-B specific, but the store does stock a couple of choices from brands like Acadia and some tail meat from Cajun Central, Inc. if you want something to take home.
Read MoreAnyone having a mental health crisis in the United States can dial 988 for help. But in five states, there's also a new pilot hotline that is specifically designed to try to help farmers and ranchers.
Read MoreAlligator season is underway in Louisiana, and with meat prices high, people within the industry expect a good year.
Alligators bring in an estimated $250 million to the state annually, according to the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Department.
Read MoreHere in Arkansas rice is a very important crop contributing over $6 billion annually to my state’s economy. The industry also employs over 25,000 people in my state. Arkansas is the #1 rice producing state in the USA and is home to 2300 rice farms. 96% of these farms are family owned and operated just like mine.
Read MoreLouisiana Economic Development and the Governor’s Office of Rural Development will join local partners in central Louisiana on Wednesday, Sept. 14, to update stakeholders on the state’s ongoing rural revitalization efforts.
Read MoreThe August 2022 Price & Production Summary gives prices for cattle, poultry, hogs and dairy.
Read MoreApplications are being accepted through Friday, October 7th, for the seventh annual Louisiana Food
Fellows program, a unique opportunity that empowers people to become leaders in the Louisiana Food
System.
Participants will attend nine evening workshops beginning Oct. 20th that will give them the resources,
skills, and inspiration they need to become change agents in Louisiana’s food system.
Effective September 11, 2022, Foster Farms increased the entry level wage rate for its Farmerville, Louisiana, processing facility TEAM members to $17.30 per hour from the current start rate of $12.70 per hour. Farmerville TEAM Members also qualify for a very comprehensive health care plan, as well as disability and life insurance coverage.
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