Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai today announced the appointment or reappointment of 55 members to serve on seven agricultural trade advisory committees.
The advisory committee system was created by Congress to ensure that U.S. agricultural stakeholders have input and insight into U.S. trade policy and negotiating objectives.
Read MoreWith August upon us, Congress has adjourned until September, giving Members of Congress the opportunity to return to their home districts and states where they will hold constituent meetings, town halls, and community events. Over the next five weeks, it will be critical for these elected officials to hear from U.S. rice industry stakeholders about important issues before reconvening for the final stretch of the 118th Congress.
Read MoreIn preparation for the August Crop Production report, USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will review all available data, including survey data and the latest information from USDA’s Farm Service Agency and Risk Management Agency, for planted and harvested acreage for barley, corn, cotton, dry edible beans, oats, peanuts, rice, sorghum, soybeans, sugarbeets, Durum wheat, other spring wheat, and winter wheat.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced loan interest rates for August 2024, which are effective Aug. 1, 2024. USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans provide important access to capital to help agricultural producers start or expand their farming operation, purchase equipment and storage structures or meet cash flow needs.
Read MoreLouisiana agriculture generates approximately $3 billion in sales each year, but in most years agricultural productivity is negatively affected by hurricane damage. Louisianans are familiar with the devastation and loss of life and property that can accompany a hurricane event as the state experiences, on average, one hurricane every three years. The total economic losses from a single hurricane can reach tens of billions of dollars, while agricultural losses can exceed one billion dollars. Louisiana is a major agricultural producer for the United States, but the structures, livestock, and crops are highly exposed to extreme wind and flooding during hurricane events.
Read MoreA lot has changed in agriculture since Richard Fontenot began farming with his grandfather and father in Evangeline Parish. New technology like drones and data collection systems give farmers more details than ever about field performance. Recent weather extremes ranging from droughts to floods have prompted farmers to adapt accordingly. And, challenges like finding enough labor and overall rising costs mean that farmers must be creative and flexible as they work to produce the crops that feed families across the country.
Read MoreLSU AgCenter researcher Richard Vlosky has helped secure $300,000 in funding for a project to support a regional mass timber supply chain connecting underrepresented populations and communities in the South with consumers and developers along the Eastern Seaboard and Mid-Atlantic.
Vlosky, professor and director of the Louisiana Forest Products Development Center in the LSU School of Renewable Natural Resources, is part of a team that brought in the 2024 U.S. Forest Service Wood Innovations Program Grant.
Read MoreIn a recent Supreme Court ruling, the Court severely constrained the power federal agencies have in interpreting the laws they administer, ruling that courts should rely on their own interpretation of am-biguous laws instead of leaving legal interpretation to the agencies themselves. The decision has been heralded as one that will have far-reaching effects across the country.
Read MoreChemical ripeners for sugarcane in Louisiana provide an important benefit. When properly applied, ripeners can maximize recoverable sugar and minimize cane yield (tonnage) losses.
In 2024, the following glyphosate formulation is recommended as a chemical ripener: Roundup PowerMAX 3. Roundup PowerMax 3 contains 4.8 pounds of glyphosate acid per gallon and is formulated as a potassium salt.
Read MoreThe USDA estimates 2023 farm production expenditures in the U.S. at $481.9 billion, up from $452.5 billion the previous year. The four largest expenditures totaled $238.7 billion and accounted for 49.6 percent of total expenditures in 2023.
Read MoreU.S. cotton growers can now enroll in Climate Smart Cotton Program Level 2. This program, led by the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, gives Level 1 growers the opportunity to receive additional financial support for implementing Climate Smart Practice Changes into their operations. Additional practice options were also added this year, increasing the number of growers eligible to participate.
Read MoreThe USDA is extending the comment period for its proposed new competition rule under the Packers & Stockyards Act by 15 days.
Tanner Beymer with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association says the later deadline is welcomed news, but it’s not enough.
Read MoreIt all started for Mandeville graduate Addison Antwiler about eight years ago.
She was just 10, but the young markswoman was about to discover a skill that would change her life.
Read MoreDonald Louis Zaunbrecher passed away peacefully on July 26, 2024 at 81 years old.
Born the youngest of 10 children to Joseph and Annie Dischler Zaunbrecher on September 7, 1942, he spent his childhood in Mowata with his family.
A farmer is who he was.
Farmers understand the importance of conservation, and as a leading provider of crop inputs and services, Nutrien understands the importance of supporting their growers. Recently, the company announced its collaborative partnership with the USA Rice and Ducks Unlimited Rice Stewardship Program.
Nutrien’s commitment to the Rice Stewardship Program is a $1 million contribution over four years to further encourage the adoption of sustainable practices in all six rice producing states: Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Texas, and California.
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