Federal Emergency Management Agency Designates 39 Counties in Arkansas as Natural Disaster Areas Due to Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, Three La. Parishes Eligible
This Presidential disaster declaration allows the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) to extend much-needed emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters through emergency loans. Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation, or to refinance certain debts. FSA will review the loans based on the extent of losses, security available, and repayment ability.
Contiguous Louisiana Parishes: Bossier, Caddo, and Webster
Read More
Radioactive Shrimp 'Good' For Louisiana – Here's Why
You've probably seen the headlines and read the story. If you haven't, you can follow this link to learn more about the recent recall of frozen shrimp that had to be made by the giant retailer Walmart. Federal investigators say the shrimp imported from Indonesia showed signs of possible radioactive contamination.
Here in Louisiana, this story affects us in a lot of different ways, but maybe, just maybe, this "nuclear shrimp" imported from southeast Asia can be the bombshell that finally blows the lid off one of the greatest injustices in American agriculture. We have to protect American farmers/fishermen from cheaper, inferior imported products.
Read More
Louisiana Currently Has 2 Major Wildfires Still Burning
Remember a couple of weeks ago hearing about a couple of wildfires burning in Louisiana?
Well, they're both still burning, and have burned a few thousand acres to date.
Read More
Faith And Farming: The Judices' Sugarcane Empire
Louisiana sugarcane is a stubborn crop. Battling extremes in heat and cold, invasive pests, sandy soils and the inevitability of destructive hurricanes means sugarcane farmers like the Judice family in St. Mary Parish, need to be as resilient as the crop itself.
Read More
American Sugar Cane League Secures Settlement In U.S. Department Of Labor Wage Rule Lawsuit
The American Sugar Cane League announced today that it has reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor in its lawsuit challenging the 2023 guest worker wage rule.
The outcome vacates the rule nationwide, eliminating costly and unrealistic wage classifications that have severely burdened farm operators across the country.
Read More
Duvall: Farmers Have Mixed Feelings About More Trade Aid
The president of the American Farm Bureau Federation says farmers might need more federal assistance to make it through 2026.
Zippy Duvall tells Brownfield “I’m beginning to hear in the last few weeks, especially in the southeast part of the country starting with the Bootheel of Missouri south, it’s time for the USDA and President Trump to start talking about that.”
Read More
Cruise to Measure Gulf Dead Zone Faces Stormy Funding Future
Despite being called a “cruise,” the people on board The Pelican described the experience on the hypoxia monitoring expedition as very different from the elaborate dinners on a towering vacation ship or booze- and buffet-filled Caribbean itinerary.
Passengers describe waves up to 5 feet high in the Gulf of Mexico, swinging the 116-foot research vessel like a pendulum, plaguing anyone who didn’t have sturdy sea legs with bouts of seasickness. Daytime temperatures in late July soared ever higher as sweat dripped down the backs of hard-hat covered heads.
Read More
SU College of Ag Alumna Allison Thomas Appointed Chief Operating Officer of the U.S. Dairy Export Council
Southern University College of Agriculture alumna Allison Thomas has been named the U.S. Dairy Export Council’s (USDEC) Chief Operating Officer (COO). The announcement was made on August 11, 2025 by the USDEC and will become effective on August 25, 2025.
In her role as COO, Thomas will report directly to USDEC President and CEO Krysta Harden and serve as her strategic thought partner, oversee USDEC’s senior leadership team, and spearhead initiatives to accelerate growth, enhance operational performance, and drive innovation across the organization.
Read More
USDA Forest Service Invests in Four Projects to Restore State and Private Forests Across the South
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service announced it is investing more than $2.1 million in four projects across nine states in the Southern Region to restore state and private forestlands. These investments directly support the agency’s efforts to reduce wildfire risk, increase timber production, and expand rural economies, while providing critical support to landowners across management jurisdictions as they work to promote healthy, productive forests that benefit rural communities.
The investments, totaling more than $7 million nationwide, are being delivered as competitive grants through the Landscape Scale Restoration program. Of the total funding, $600,000 will support two projects for federally recognized tribes.
Read More
ASA Urges President Trump To Prioritize China Trade As Farmers Face Crisis
The American Soybean Association is urging President Trump to prioritize soybeans in U.S.-China trade talks, warning that retaliatory tariffs are shutting American farmers out of their largest export market going into the 2025 soybean harvest.
In a letter sent to the White House, the group called for the removal of Chinese tariffs on U.S. soybeans and commitments for future purchases. ASA also released a white paper outlining the financial consequences of losing long-term market share in China.
Read More
Row Crop Farmers Confront Economic Challenges Amid Falling Prices
Earlier this week, USDA released its estimate for the national average farm case price for corn in the 2025/26 marketing year to be $3.90. That update is down 30¢ from what USDA was saying just last month in July.
Farm CPA Paul Neiffer says in the short-term it means two things: a focus on government payments and tougher conversations with ag lenders.
Read More
Dozens of Port Projects Waiting for Funding
Louisiana’s Office of Multi-modal Commerce says billions of dollars in port projects are stuck in line for funding, with requests piling up as far back as 2019.
Julia Fisher-Cormier, the office’s director, said the program’s design allowed applications to build up without caps on approvals, even when annual funding was a fraction of the demand.
Read More
Keeping Ahead of Strawberry Diseases: LSU AgCenter Working With Strawberry Growers To Manage New Disease
Louisiana strawberry farmers regularly contend with a multitude of challenges, including labor costs, unfavorable weather conditions, insect and mite pests, and plant diseases. In February 2022, a new-to-Louisiana disease was identified when a Tangipahoa Parish strawberry grower asked me to look at a field where plants were dying.
Read More
Louisiana Legislators May Convene in Late 2025 to Discuss Potential Redistricting of Current Congressional Map
Louisiana House Speaker Phillip DeVillier has told legislators to keep their calendars open for a possible redistricting special session in late October or November. Lapoliticsweekly.com publisher Jeremy Alford says there are already constitutional questions about Louisiana’s current Congressional map and there’s also an effort to create more Republican seats.
Read More
Progress Being Made in Containment of Backbone Fire in Kisatchie Hills Wilderness Area
Crews are making good progress on the Backbone Fire in the Kisatchie Hills Wilderness Area in Natchitoches Parish. Jim Caldwell with the U.S. Forest Service says as of yesterday evening, the 2,400-acre fire was just under 60% contained.
“Our lines are certainly holding. There’s still a very small amount of fire out there, but things are going completely to plan, and we think it will soon be out,” Caldwell said.
Read More
