Agriculture plays a vital role in Louisiana, contributing over $4.8 billion in agricultural products from 25,006 farms across nearly 8 million acres, according to the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Census of Agriculture.
Recognizing the industry’s importance, Louisiana offers specialty agriculture license plates as a unique way for residents to show support for the state’s farming community while directly funding agricultural education initiatives.
Read MoreA Mass of Christian burial will be held on Monday, November 11, 2024, at 12:00 p.m. at Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Church in Opelousas for Richard Martin Hollier, Jr., ("Dickie"), 96, who passed away on November 6, 2024.
He served as Chairman of the Atchafalaya Fish and Game Commission, President of the St. Landry Sportsman's League, President of the St. Landry Parish Farm Bureau, and Chairman of the St. Landry Soil and Water Conservation District, a position he held for over 50 years.
Read MoreLouisiana corn for grain production is forecast at 84.1 million bushels, unchanged from the October 1 forecast but down 29 percent from 2023. Based on conditions as of November 1, yield is expected to average 189 bushels per acre, unchanged from last month but up 14 bushels from last year. Producers expect to harvest 445,000 acres of corn for grain, down 235,000 acres from 2023.
Upland cotton production is forecast at 310,000 bales, up 10,000 bales from the October 1 forecast and 101,000 bales above last year.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released 2022 Census of Agriculture data tabulated by zip code. This allows users to explore farm characteristics at a local level. The zip code tabulations are available through Quick Stats, NASS’s online data query tool.
“We are excited to provide data users yet another access point to ag census data with our zip code tabulations,” said NASS Administrator Joseph Parsons.
Read MoreWhile export sales of U.S. cotton are slightly improved, demand continues to lag USDA estimates. More importantly, there is little to no evidence of any improvement in demand during the coming six months. Thus, December futures will likely trade in the 67-72 cent area through January-February 2025.
Read MoreA few parishes lifted burn bans as of Thursday morning, including Natchitoches and Winn.
More than half the parishes in the state had burn bans in place before rain swept through much of the state over the past week.
Read MoreA newly established award recognizes veterans or service members for excellence in farming or agriculture and positively impacting local communities. Retired Army Col. Joe Ricker of Indiana is the first recipient of the Veteran Farmer Award of Excellence presented by the American Farm Bureau Federation with support from Farm Credit.
Ricker served 30 years in the Army before retiring from a logistics post at the Pentagon in 2022. His service also included tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since leaving the Army, his commitment to excellence in farming and enriching the lives of veterans has blossomed in a myriad of ways in both his local community of Wilkinson, Indiana, and across the country.
Read MoreGovernor Jeff Landry opened a special session on tax reform by making the case the state’s current tax code is the reason why Louisiana ranks last on so many lists. Landry says change is desperately needed.
“This tax code is bloated. This tax code is broken. This tax code is incredibly out-of-date. And this tax code is holding our state back,” Landry said.
Read MoreIf there's one thing 13-year-old Reace Payton knows about raising goats, it's that it isn't easy.
"It's a lot of hard work. You've got to get up early in the morning," Payton said.
But that hard work is more than half the point, and on Tuesday the Minden teenager was among many from around the state hoping all their effort would pay off.
Read MoreFor more than 130 years, research has been a top priority for LSU agriculture.
Since the 1880s, agricultural experiment stations have provided researchers fertile ground to work to improve the agricultural production and economy of Louisiana.
What began with three agricultural research outposts staffed by 15 employees more than a century ago has evolved into 14 LSU AgCenter research stations statewide staffed by dozens of world-renowned scientists.
Read MoreThe Acadia Parish 4-H Bee Club meets on the first Wednesday of each month, offering students hands-on activities to help educate them about how bees operate and benefit the environment.
In a recent meeting, students made candles for an upcoming fundraiser aimed at helping them purchase beekeeper suits. Goldie Keller, a member of the 4-H Bee Club, describes the experience as un-bee-lievable.
Read MoreElection night couldn’t have gone better for Republicans. Voters returned Donald Trump to the White House and gave the GOP a Senate majority. While control of the House remains up in the air as of early Wednesday morning, it’s clear the political landscape will be much different in D.C. come 2025.
But what about the rest of this year? Could a lame duck president and Congress deliver a farm bill on the way out? It could just happen.
Read MoreNatural resource conservation management (NRCM) majors at McNeese State University are living out the dreams of nature lovers.
The NRCM major is ideal for those passionate about all things nature, wildlife and conservation. A typical Monday for NRCM majors might include electrofishing, observing species at a refuge or conducting soil surveys.
Read MoreAmerican Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented on the election of Donald Trump to be the 47th President of the United States of America.
“Farm Bureau congratulates President-elect Donald Trump on his election to lead our great nation, as well as the representatives and senators elected to serve in the 119th Congress. We are committed to working with our nation’s leaders to strengthen agriculture and rural America, and we look forward to continuing that work in the days ahead.
Read MoreThe Louisiana State Fire Marshal's Office, along with the Acadia Parish Sheriff's Office, is trying to spread the word about an arson case that happened Sunday, November 3, in Lyons Point.
Officials with these organizations are partnering with Acadia Parish Crime Stoppers, hoping that by spreading the message, they will find the person or persons responsible for setting multiple bales of hay on fire.
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