Rep. Higgins Requests Federal Aid for Crawfish Industry After Drought, Freeze

Congressman Clay Higgins sent a letter to the United States Department of Agriculture requesting relief for Louisiana’s crawfish industry amid devasting losses from the drought in 2023 and the recent freeze.

In the letter sent on Wednesday, Higgins asked the USDA to revise the criteria for an eligible cause of loss to include drought under the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program.

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AquacultureAvery Davidson
Louisiana's Drought is Fueling the ‘Unprecedented’ Crawfish Prices this Season

Louisiana's ongoing exceptional drought is making the Bayou state's staple of boiled crawfish unaffordable for many. 

Louisiana is amid its worst drought since 2000, with more than 70% of the Bayou State in exceptional drought, the worst rating on the 5-level U.S. Drought Monitor scale. Many of the crawfish farmers' crops from last spring didn't survive without rain. 

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USA Rice Washington Staff Visits The Pelican State

USA Rice Washington staff brought a break in the recent rain here for industry visits and to talk about the crop year ahead.

USA Rice President & CEO Peter Bachmann, Chief Operating Officer Sarah Moran, and Vice President of Communications & Domestic Promotion Michael Klein first met with the Central Louisiana Rice Growers Association (CenLaRGA) where President Michael Fruge expressed the frustration and anxiety many Louisiana rice farmers are feeling because of unusually low crawfish harvests in particular.

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Ricedon molino
Sugarcane Soil Fertility Recommendations For 2024

When considering a sugarcane soil fertility program, follow these guidelines. The number one priority should be the soil pH. Soil pH that is outside the optimum ranges will adversely affect the availability of all other applied nutrients. The second most important component of your fertility program should be nitrogen, followed by potassium, sulfur and phosphorus. Soil testing should be a regular part of your soil fertility program. Periodic leaf tissue analyses can verify midseason plant health

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Louisiana Seafood Suppliers Struggling to Get Their Hands on Crawfish: ‘Phone Is Ringing Nonstop'

Crawfish season is here, yet some popular places like Louisiana – the largest crawfish producer in the country – are without the delicacy as restaurants and seafood suppliers are struggling to get their hands on it.

Trudy Alexander, the owner of Kenner Seafood, said she has been shipping crawfish around the United States for nearly three decades. 

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Aquaculturekristen oaks
LSU and Universities Statewide Awarded $160 Million Grant by U-S National Science Foundation to Support Energy Industry

LSU and other Louisiana universities have been awarded a $160 million grant – the largest ever awarded by U-S National Science Foundation to support energy transition, decarbonization, and create jobs. Vice President of Research and Economic Development Robert Twilley says the grant positions the state to be the leader in expanding the energy industry.

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kristen oaks
Prisoners in the US Are Part of a Hidden Workforce Linked to Hundreds of Popular Food Brands

A hidden path to America's dinner tables begins here, at an unlikely source – a former Southern slave plantation that is now the country's largest maximum-security prison.

Unmarked trucks packed with prison-raised cattle roll out of the Louisiana State Penitentiary, where men are sentenced to hard labor and forced to work, for pennies an hour or sometimes nothing at all. After rumbling down a country road to an auction house, the cows are bought by a local rancher and then followed by The Associated Press another 600 miles to a Texas slaughterhouse that feeds into the supply chains of giants like McDonald's, Walmart and Cargill.

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kristen oaks
Cotton Prices Improve But The Walk Will Likely Be Wobbly

Prices (old crop March 2024 futures) have finally broken to the upside and now stand within the previous 83 to 89 cents range we had for months prior to the most recent setback to mostly 74 to 82 cents. But, that old 83 to 89 cents range will now become a barrier. That’s the way markets work, and it may be a tough nut to crack. Note, for example, that price was down sharply on Jan. 26.

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Cottondon molino