Deer with Chronic Wasting Disease Found in St. Landry Parish, 2 Other Louisiana Parishes
Three more deer have tested positive for chronic wasting disease in Louisiana, one of them in St. Landry Parish, officials said.
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries said CWD was found in captive deer in pens permitted by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry. The recent detections in St. Landry, Concordia, and Tangipahoa parishes are linked to trace outs from a captive CWD positive deer pen in Jefferson Davis Parish, where CWD was first confirmed in a captive deer back in November.
Read More
Cotton Farmers Can Expect 15 New Varieties For 2025
As cotton producers prepare for #Plant25, over 20 new cotton varieties are commercially available. Here is the annual roundup, featuring the 2025 releases that provide an array of options for farmers throughout the Cotton Belt.
Read More
Southern University Ag Center Set To Host The 3rd Annual Boots & Bling Affair
The Southern University Ag Center will host its 3rd Annual Boots and Bling Affair on Saturday, February 22, 2025, from 7 p.m. – 12 a.m. in the F.G. Clark Activity Center on Southern University’s campus.
Funds raised from the Boots and Bling Affair will be used to provide scholarship awards and necessary equipment to youth exhibitors participating in the Ag Center's Annual Livestock and Poultry Show.
Read More
LSU Researchers Develop Way To Keep Eggs Fresh For Longer Using Crawfish Shells
Louisiana produces 850 million pounds of seafood each year, according to the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board. Much of that includes crustaceans like crawfish, shrimp, and crab. It follows that Louisiana also produces a lot of seafood waste once those crustaceans are processed. However, researchers at LSU’s School of Nutrition and Food Science have developed a way to turn a smelly byproduct of the seafood industry into a way to make other foods last longer on the shelf.
Read More
Pre-Vet Program at McNeese Lays a Strong Foundation for Veterinary School
Ashton Landry, McNeese State University alumna, is well on her way to becoming a veterinarian after completing McNeese’s agricultural sciences program. Her path is one that current pre-veterinary students, like junior Madison Watson and sophomore Jade Bel, want to follow.
From the start of her college career, Landry knew she wanted to attend veterinary school. To begin, she chose to study agricultural sciences at McNeese. The small class sizes and hands-on program made it a great choice for her.
Read More
LSU AgCenter Hosting Six Master Cattleman Programs
The LSU AgCenter is excited to host six Master Cattleman Programs throughout the state this spring. The Master Cattleman Program is designed to help beef cattle and forage producers enhance their production and profitability. Participants must complete 30 hours, which includes 10 three-hour blocks of instruction, to become a certified Louisiana Master Cattleman.
Read More
An Expert's Advice For Buying Quality Crawfish Out Of Season
Meaty with a sweet but oceanic quality, live crawfish are delicious in a seafood boil made with sausage and potatoes. However, these versatile mudbugs are also perfect for sauteing, frying, and baking. The problem? Peak crawfish season only lasts from January to July, which makes it tricky to source top grade crustaceans during the second half of the year; bad news if you're craving a Cajun crawfish pie in October. We spoke to Chef Johnnie Gale, corporate chef at Guidry's Catfish and product and recipe developer at Ocean Select Seafood, to get some expert advice on buying quality crawfish out of season.
Read More
LSU AgCenter State Livestock Show Dedicated to Ascension Parish's Frank Sotile
The 2025 LSU AgCenter State Livestock Show, set for Feb. 11-18 at the Lamar-Dixon Expo Center in Gonzales, has been dedicated to Donaldsonville native Frank Sotile.
He exhibited his first 4-H steer at the LSU show in 1950 when he was 9 years old, sparking a lifetime of dedication to the organization, according to the AgCenter.
Read More
USDA Applauds Mexico’s Action Towards Resolving USMCA Dispute on GE Corn
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released the following statement commending Mexico’s action to declare ineffective measures concerning genetically engineered (GE) corn that the United States successfully challenged in the USMCA dispute. The action safeguards approximately $5.6 billion in U.S. corn exports to Mexico. USDA, in coordination with USTR, will continue to monitor Mexico’s compliance with its USMCA commitments.
Read More
Be Aware Of Email Phishing Scam Falsely Using USDA Logo
The National Organic Program is aware that certifiers and certified operations have received emails from sources pretending to be the USDA. These emails, referred to as phishing emails, have been sent using the following information:
Read More
Louisiana Farmers Work To Fill Gap As Egg Prices Go Up Across The US
Across the nation, bird flu is destroying flocks and creating egg shortages. In Southeast Louisiana, farmers are filling that poultry gap.
Kickn' Chickn' Farm is a homestead in Zachary that sells eggs. Over the past three weeks, Owners Chris and Nicole Young said business has grown and now the farm has backorders for all the eggs demanded.
Read More
Baton Rouge Community Farm Training the Next Generation of Urban Farmers
Fresh food is a premium in neighborhoods where transportation is lacking and walkability to fresh produce is not feasible. In the capital city, Baton Roots not only grows food in those communities to counteract such issues but is also paving a path toward horticultural futures by training the next generation of urban gardeners.
Read More
Seafood Testing Campaign Ahead of Super Bowl Raises Awareness of Foreign Shrimp
A new round of genetic seafood testing conducted for a state advisory panel detected foreign shrimp that was falsely presented as domestic in a small percentage of the restaurants sampled in New Orleans, despite a new state law that forbids the practice.
Read More
Letlow Legislation Improves Disaster Assistance for Farmers, Landowners
In the wake of recent natural disasters causing severe damage to Louisiana’s timber economy, Congresswoman Julia Letlow has introduced legislation adding improvements to disaster relief programs for forest landowners.
Read More
Grower Meetings Across the Mid-South Address Changing Landscape for U.S. Agriculture Policy
Yesterday proved to be a busy day for rice growers from southeast Texas to central and northeast Louisiana.
In what was likely a first time, and probably on nobody’s Bingo card, the SETX Rice Symposium had to be rescheduled due to an unprecedented snow event across the Gulf Coast region in late January. Dr. Mithila Jugulam, director of the Rice Research Station in Beaumont, welcomed growers and industry representatives to the Winnie Stovall Community Center yesterday afternoon.
Read More