One certainty for farmers in 2025 is that uncertainty will prevail. Farmers know they must befriend uncertainty because it remains their constant companion.
Farmers anticipate another year of low commodity prices and high production costs. They will watch their expenses and determine the best pricing opportunities to market their crops.
Read MoreNew Year’s resolutions don’t have to be big and audacious.
To make lasting and beneficial modifications, nutrition and physical activity experts at the LSU AgCenter recommend starting with small changes.
Read MoreState water conservationists warn that the Sparta Aquifer could soon reach unstable daily extractions of water.
Meanwhile, the Sparta Groundwater Conservation District Commission recently developed a model of the Sparta Aquifer to allow the commission to run a variety of tests to determine potential long-term solutions.
Read MoreThe deadline for registering for the 2025 RTWG and for securing a hotel room at the conference hotel is quickly approaching. The deadline to register without incurring a late fee and to reserve a hotel room at the conference hotel is January 17, 2025. However, ii is important to point out that hotel rooms at the conference rate are on a first-come, first-served basis. To ensure you are able to secure your room, you are encouraged to make your reservation as soon as possible.
Read MoreLouisiana Republican Mike Johnson was reelected as Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives in dramatic fashion on Friday as the 119th Congress got underway. Johnson eventually secured the necessary 218 Republican votes after a couple representatives changed their position before the final tally.
Read MoreAfter a week of drama, the Senate finally voted 85 to 11 to pass a spending bill to avoid federal government shutdown. The House of Representatives earlier had voted overwhelmingly to approve a short-term funding bill for the government that included nearly $31 billion in aid for farmers faced with natural disasters and economic challenges. The bill (H.R. 10545) was signed by President Joe Biden on December 21st .
Read MoreSometimes people will ask, “What’s an acre of trees worth?” Obviously, a regular reader of Forest & People magazine would know that to answer that question, we need more information, which would be obtained on site.
Inputs like tree size, vigor, form, number of trees per acre is information that is generally collected with a timber cruise. Now is a good time to go over some of the basics of forest measurement.
Read MoreThe LSU AgCenter will hold its 2025 Precision Agriculture Summit Jan. 25 at the State Evacuation Shelter near Alexandria.
The shelter’s address is 8125 U.S. Highway 71 South. This summit will present new ways for farmers to use data and analysis to take care of their farms.
Read MoreFarm Bureau farmer and rancher members play an important role in our communities and our organization by serving on governing boards and committees at local, state and national levels. Several newly appointed volunteers will provide leadership beginning in 2025 as members of the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Promotion & Education and Young Farmers & Ranchers committees.
Duvall announced the appointment of the following members to the YF&R Committee for the 2025-2027 term beginning in March: Cleveland Jackson, Georgia, (beef cattle); Scot Schwieterman, Kansas (alfalfa hay, row crops, cereal grains); Rachel Duncan, Louisiana (soybeans, beef cattle, cut flowers); Cora Okkema, Michigan (dairy cattle); Dustin and Katie Wiese, Minnesota (beef cattle, hay, corn, sorghum, oats); Tommy Salisbury, Oklahoma (soybeans, milo, wheat, beef cattle); and Jonathan Quigley, Washington (tree fruit).
Read MoreThousands of pounds of tree trimmings, yard waste, and a small percentage of Christmas trees are being recycled into compost at the Lafayette Consolidated Government's (LCG) Dean Domingues Compost Facility.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced loan interest rates for January 2025, which are effective Jan. 1, 2025. 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 MoreBefore they hit grocery shelves with labels that shout, “New and Improved!” or “Lower in Calories,” some foods first pass a gauntlet of everyday Louisianans who taste, smell and scrutinize the product in a lab in Baton Rouge.
Read MoreCongress included economic aid for farmers in the continuing resolution (CR), which keeps the government funded through March 14, 2025. The “Economic Loss Assistance Program” earmarks $10 billion in direct payments for farmers.
While USDA will make the final calculations, Farm CPA Paul Neiffer estimates per acre producer payments will be the following:
Read MoreObviously, this market is wearing me out – and you, too! I commented last week that any price slippage below 69 cents would be short lived. I refused to believe my own words. That comment was written with hope in mind.
Read MoreAmerican Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented today on the ping pong of court orders that ended with a court-ordered reprieve from Treasury Department reporting requirements for many small businesses.
Earlier this month, a federal court halted the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirement from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. On Monday, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reinstated the Jan. 1, 2025, deadline.
Read More
