The growth of AI means all sorts of new and innovative ways to generate ideas and content.

And, considering we're in the content business, I decided to boot up the ol' AI machine and see how I could use it to create some good, Louisiana-centric content for you and I to enjoy.

And considering it's crawfish season, I couldn't help but wonder what our soon-to-be-AI overlords thought about cooking and eating crawfish. I was inspired, mind you, by this recent story of two young Brits trying crawfish for the first time.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) today announced the results of the 2022 Census of Agriculture, spanning more than 6 million data points about America’s farms and ranches and the people who operate them down to the county level. The information collected directly from producers shows a continued fall in the total number of Louisiana farms. However, the data also show a rise in the number of new and beginning (operating 10 or fewer years on any farm) as well as young (under the age of 35) producers in Louisiana.

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall today commented on the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to allow farmers to use existing stocks of dicamba for the upcoming planting season. AFBF sent a letter to EPA earlier this week following a recent federal court ruling in Arizona, which vacated the registration of three dicamba products, critically important tools for farmers in fighting resistant weeds.

In light of the February 6, 2024, ruling by the U.S. District Court of Arizona vacating the 2020 registrations for over-the-top (OTT) dicamba products, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing the following update. On February 14, 2024, EPA issued an Existing Stocks Order for Dicamba Products Previously Registered for Over-the-Top Use on Dicamba-Tolerant Cotton and Soybean. This Order addresses use of the formerly-registered dicamba products and authorizes limited sale and distribution of dicamba products that are already in the possession of growers or in the channels of trade and outside the control of the pesticide companies. 

A rural internet subsidy program could soon be phased out, putting 23 million households at risk of losing internet access.

If you’re looking for a different kind of Mardi Gras experience this year, head to the City of Eunice. Instead of catching beads and doubloons, revelers chase chickens in colorful costumes during Courir de Mardi Gras & Chicken Run. Events Coordinator, Courtney Elkins says the chicken run is part of their Cajun tradition that everyone loves to participate in.

New agriculture census data released by USDA today is cause for concern as the number of farms operating in the United States and the number of farm acres have both fallen significantly. The 2022 Census of Agriculture reports 141,733 fewer farms in 2022 than in 2017. The number of farm acres fell to 880,100,848, a loss of more than 20 million acres from just five years earlier.

Trailblazer is presenting two free workshops on Wildlife Habitat Management: Deer Habitat, March 4 and 5 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. and although free, you must register for the event.

More than 2,000 4-H and FFA members will gather Feb. 10-17  for the 89th annual LSU AgCenter Livestock Show at the Lamar-Dixon Expo Center in Gonzales.

Walking through Mardi Gras World, I didn’t expect to find a connection to agriculture. I was there to learn how the Mardi Gras parade floats are designed and built. As it turns out, some of the designs include agriculture themes. Many of the floats are pulled by tractors instead of horses or mules.