Dr. Orlando F. McMeans to Receive the Career Achievement Award from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Orlando F. McMeans, Ph.D., Chancellor-Dean of the Southern University Ag Center and the College of Agricultural, Human and Environmental Sciences, has been named one of three 2025 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) Career Achievement Award recipients.
The award is presented to alumni who have demonstrated exceptional professional achievements and/or made extraordinary humanitarian contributions resulting in meaningful or life-changing impacts on a significant population.
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Louisiana Monthly Climate Summary: February 2025
February statewide rainfall averaged 5.24” for the month (preliminary estimate), less than 1.00” above the norm (p. 7) and falling within the middle third of all February totals over the past 130 years. While not far from the norm, February 2025 is the “wettest” February statewide since 2020. Monthly totals were generally above the mean, particularly in the northern and western parishes. By contrast, every station in the East Central Climate Division reported.
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USDA WASDE Report Projects India Will Dethrone China As World’s Largest Rice Producer
Last week, in its monthly World Agriculture Supply and Demand Estimates Report, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates India is expected to surpass China as the largest rice producing nation in the world this marketing year (MY2024/25).
Over the last nine years, India has experienced an unprecedented back-to-back record-breaking rice harvest.
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USDA Cancels Biden Era Climate Slush Fund, Reprioritizes Existing Funding to Farmers
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced the cancellation of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities (PCSC). Following a thorough line by line review of each of these Biden era partnerships, it became clear that the majority of these projects had sky-high administration fees which in many instances provided less than half of the federal funding directly to farmers.
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Market Fundamentals Providing Better Footing For Cotton Prices
The market gave cotton a bit more footing this past week as price activity returned to trading fundamentals as opposed to the news media’s chaotic presentation of tariffs and the resulting Wall Street knee jerk activity.
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Louisiana Crop Progress and Condition: April 2025
According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service in Louisiana, there were 6.2 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending Sunday, April 13, 2025. Topsoil moisture supplies were 0 percent very short, 13 percent short, 67 percent adequate, and 20 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies were 1 percent very short, 5 percent short, 77 percent adequate, and 17 percent surplus.
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‘A Living Laboratory’: An Accidental Delta Taught Louisiana Scientists How to Rebuild Wetlands
Amid the rapid erosion of Louisiana's coast, something hopeful is happening where the Atchafalaya River meets the Gulf. A flow of sediment from a decades-old river diversion has accidentally given birth to new wetlands.
While that small delta is dwarfed by what’s washing away all around it, researchers have gained knowledge from Wax Lake Delta that could help save the rest of Louisiana’s coast and contribute to a better understanding of wetland science across the globe.
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Covington Senator McMath to Lead MAHA Legislation in the Regular Session
In the 2025 Louisiana legislative session, Covington Senator Patrick McMath is championing the Make America Healthy Again agenda. McMath says given the state’s persistent health challenges, there needs to be more of an effort to prioritize health.
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Louisiana Residents Should Look Out for Stinging Caterpillars Falling from Trees
It's the worst time of the year in New Orleans -- stinging caterpillars are back.
According to the LSU AgCenter, buck moth caterpillars become a problem in the spring in Louisiana due to their spines that are covered in venom.
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New Louisiana Wildlife & Fisheries Management Area Established In Allen Parish
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries announced 426 acres between the towns of Reeves and LeBlanc will be established as a new wildlife management area (WMA).
The area, which is being called the Flatwoods Savanna WMA, will be LDWF’s fifty-second WMA and will be located in southwest Allen Parish.
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Louisiana Farm & Ranch: April 2025
Thanks to Buck Leonards and the staff at Louisiana Farm & Ranch for providing the digital edition.
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Louisiana Shrimpers Hope Proposed Trump Tariffs Could Boost Local Industry
Despite lingering uncertainty over the pause in proposed tariffs, shrimpers in Delcambre are cautiously optimistic. For many in this tight-knit community, the move signals the possibility of long-awaited relief for an industry that’s been struggling to stay afloat.
Rene “Lil Man” Gregorie, a third-generation shrimper, has spent four decades navigating these waters.
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Louisiana Farmers Brace for Trade Turbulence Amid New Tariffs
Louisiana farmers are no strangers to market instability, but the recent wave of tariffs announced on April 2 added a fresh layer of uncertainty to an already difficult planting season.
LFBF Commodity and Public Policy Director Andy Brown, has fielded many phone calls from both farmers and media. He said the farmers are not panicked but rather recognize the reality of the situation.
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2025 Legislative Session to Focus on Auto Insurance Reform, Budget and MAHA Legislation
The 2025 legislative session begins Monday, and insurance reform will be a big topic for the next two months. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat conducted a poll two weeks ago and found that 76 percent of the respondents have experienced a premium increase of ten percent or more in the past year.
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USDA Announces Agricultural Trade Promotion Programs For FY '26
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is launching agricultural trade promotion programs for FY 2026 and accepting applications for four export market development programs. USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service has opened funding opportunities for the Market Access Program (MAP), Foreign Market Development Program (FMD), Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops Program (TASC), and Emerging Markets Program (EMP) that will help U.S. agricultural producers promote and sell their goods internationally.
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