Louisiana is known the world over for its love of revelry and food and the two came together last week for the inaugural Louisiana Food & Wine Festival where U.S. rice was served, sampled, and distributed throughout the weekend. Thanks to generous donations and support from four local USA Rice members – Falcon Rice Mill, Farmers Rice Mill, Kennedy Rice, and Supreme Rice – USA Rice signage and “Grown in the USA” messaging was everywhere.
Read MoreThis month’s 2023/24 U.S. corn outlook projects slightly larger supplies and ending stocks. Projected beginning stocks for 2023/24 have been lowered by 5 million bushels mostly due to offsetting trade and corn used for ethanol changes for 2022/23. Corn production for 2023/24 is forecast at 15.1 billion bushels, this a 23-million-bushel increase from last month’s estimates as greater harvested area more than offsets reductions in yield.
Read MoreIn a national survey of 2,000 registered voters, Morning Consult found strong support for the U.S. sugar industry and recognition that it is an important part of the American economy and food security. An overwhelming majority, 94% of surveyed voters, recognize the vital role farmers play in the economy, and 86% of surveyed voters support sugar policy in the Farm Bill.
Read MoreThe LSU College of Agriculture and Arkansas' Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences are gearing up for an exciting battle, but it's not happening on the football field. This crowdfunding challenge, known as the Golden Boot Giving Challenge, is set to take place from September 16 to September 23, 2023.
Each year, the LSU Tigers and Arkansas Razorbacks fight for the “Golden Boot” on the football field. Mirroring this rivalry, LSU and University of Arkansas are battling to see which college of agriculture has the most supporters.
Read MoreThe Community Food Project Competitive Grants Program is intended to bring together stakeholders from distinct parts of the food system and to foster understanding of national food security trends and how they might improve local food systems. Understanding that low-income individuals experience disproportionate access to healthy foods, projects are intended to address food and nutrition insecurity, particularly among our nation’s most vulnerable populations.
Read MoreInvestigators with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) Forestry Enforcement Division arrested 32-year-old Michael Shawn Setliff of Flatwoods, Louisiana, on three counts of simple arson for fires set in Grant Parish.
Investigators allege that on September 13, 2023, Setliff set multiple wildfires off Highway 500 and on W.W. Melton Road.
Read MoreIn a crowded room in Iberville Parish on Thursday night, the sentiment was clear: “no solar.”
That message was written on several comment cards read out during the meeting about a proposed solar project in White Castle, which drew more than 150 people.
Read MoreGov. John Bel Edwards has requested an emergency declaration for disaster relief for Louisiana shrimpers amid a flood of foreign shrimp that has driven dockside prices to below $1 per pound.
Edwards made the request in late August at the behest of the Louisiana Shrimp Association, which penned a letter to the governor in August seeking the declaration, the first step in securing disaster relief funding for shrimpers from the federal government.
Read MoreCommunity leaders along the Mississippi River worried that dry southwestern states will someday try to take the river's water may soon take their first step toward blocking such a diversion.
Mayors from cities along the river were expected to vote on whether to support a new compact among the river's 10 states at last week's annual meeting of the Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative, according to its executive director Colin Wellenkamp. Supporters of a compact hope it will strengthen the region's collective power around shared goals like stopping water from leaving the corridor.
Read MoreThe Lions Camp Fire in Vernon Parish is one of the largest wildfires Louisiana has ever recorded with nearly 800 acres being burnt.
The wildfire caused major damage and threatened several properties as it spread, even coming dangerously close to some homes.
Read MoreMost people aren't thinking about crawfish season yet, but the cycle of producing crawfish for those springtime boils is already underway.
Mike Frugé, co-owner of Frugé Aquafarms in Acadia Parish has been preparing his fields for the early crawfish season. He introduced the seed crawfish in May to the rice crop he planted in March or April.
Read MoreA bridge closure in Plaquemine could spell trouble for truck drivers that haul sugar cane.
Work to repair the LA 1 Southbound bridge was supposed to be complete by the end of September, before the sugar cane harvest season began. Now, DOTD has extended that deadline to October 20th.
Read MoreIt’s game time says Soy Transportation Coalition executive director Mike Steenhoek, and key waterway infrastructure systems are not ready.
“There's a couple times a year where it's game time more than others, and harvest season is one of those periods and you need to have our supply chain operating on all cylinders,” Steenhoek says.
Read MoreWith nearly 50 percent of soybean harvest complete, many farmers are hoping for a good crop this year to help cover their losses from last year.
This harvest season, farmers faced hot and dry weather, while last year’s story was the other extreme with heavy rainfall. Roy Eley, a Franklin Parish grain farmer is among those who really needed a better crop this year.
Read MoreNutritionist Jen Avis was back in the Good Morning ArkLaMiss studio today talking about a locally grown food item - rice.
Although Avis says rice has many nutritional benefits, she says there are things to watch out for. According to Avis, 1 cup of rice is equal to 45 grams of carbs - she says that’s something diabetics have to watch out for.
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