102nd Annual Louisiana Farm Bureau Convention Underway

The 102nd Annual Convention of the Louisiana Farm Bureau, the state’s largest general farm organization, is underway here at the Marriott Hotel on Canal St.

The convention will see 1,500 farm families attend during the four-day event, which includes contests, commodity conferences, youth activities and a host of guest speakers, including politicians. Expected to attend this year is U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow, R-La., Commissioner of Ag and Forestry Dr. Mike Strain and Commissioner of Insurance Tim Temple.

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The Farmer's Forecast: It's Convention Time!

It’s convention time, so let’s jump in with a New Orleans forecast for everyone that will be gathering down there this weekend! It looks like a very New Orleans weekend with loads of humidity, plenty of heat, and daily rain chances. Rain should keep highs around 90 each day, with lows only falling into the upper 70s. Some of the most refreshing moments will be the time immediately after thunderstorms in the afternoon.

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Cost Of Summer Cookout Reaches Record High   

Families celebrating the 4th of July holiday will continue to find stubbornly high prices at the grocery store. An Independence Day cookout will cost $71.22 for 10 guests this year, based on the 2024 American Farm Bureau Federation annual marketbasket survey.

The grocery bill is up 5% from 2023, and almost 30% from just five years ago. A $7.12 per-person cost represents a record high since AFBF began the survey in 2013. The cookout favorites include cheeseburgers, chicken breasts, pork chops, homemade potato salad, strawberries and ice cream, among other products.

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Almond Brothers Lumber, LaSalle Lumber tops in safety

Almond Brothers Lumber Co. and LaSalle Lumber were recently awarded the 2023 John Edgar Rhodes Sawmill Safety Exellence Award by the Southern Forest Products Association (SFPA).

Almond Brothers Lumber of Coushatta was one of three mills in Division I (producing 50 million board feet or less) and LaSalle Lumber of Urania was the only mill in Division III (producing more than 150 million board feet annually) receiving the award for having zero reported incidents in 2023.

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ForestryAvery Davidson
LSU AgCenter Pays Tribute to Avoyelles Parish Sweet Potato Industry with Release of New, Early-maturing Variety

It can be harvested up to 30 days sooner than other sweet potatoes. It is a high yielder and tastes great, though its skin is a shade lighter than the sweet potatoes many Louisianans are accustomed to.

It’s the LSU AgCenter’s newest sweet potato variety, Avoyelles — named for the parish where scientists initially saw its potential and a parish that has played a central role in the state’s sweet potato industry for decades.

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AFBF Appreciates Packers and Stockyards Act Updates

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented today on USDA’s release of the Fair and Competitive Livestock and Poultry Markets proposed rule, intended to improve fairness and competition in the livestock, meat and poultry sectors. This is the fourth rule issued by USDA to address fairness and competitiveness in livestock markets under the Packers and Stockyards Act.

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Emergency Forest Restoration Program

The Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) helps the owners of non-industrial private forests restore forest health damaged by natural disasters.

The local FSA County Committee implements EFRP for all disasters with the exceptions of drought and insect infestations. In the case of drought or an insect infestation, the national FSA office authorizes EFRP implementation.

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Forestry, USDAdon molino
Tissue Testing Helps In Determining Hidden Hunger Potassium Deficiency In Soybeans

Potassium deficiency symptoms in soybean first appear as irregular yellowing on the edges of K-deficient leaves, typically manifesting as early as the V3 vegetative stage (three trifoliolate leaves), primarily on the lower older leaves (Figure 1). In severe K-deficient soils, symptoms often appear on the upper younger leaves during the reproductive stages (Figure 2). Early-season K deficiency symptoms are relatively easy to diagnose and manage. However, many soybean fields experience K deficiency and consequent yield losses without displaying visible symptoms until the later reproductive growth stages (beginning seed, R5 to full-seed, R6).

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Louisiana Crop Progress And Condition: June 23, 2024

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service in Louisiana, there were 6.1 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending Sunday, June 23, 2024. Topsoil moisture supplies were 1 percent very short, 20 percent short, 71 percent adequate, and 8 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies were 0 percent very short, 15 percent short, 78 percent adequate, and 7 percent surplus.

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USDAdon molino