U.S. farm groups are urging Congress to move quickly on a new Farm Bill, warning that continued delays could increase uncertainty for producers heading into the 2026 growing season. Commodity organizations say programs covering crop insurance, conservation, nutrition assistance and farm safety nets need long-term stability.
Read MoreLast winter, Louisiana sugarcane farmers watched a historic snowfall do something few expected. It helped protect the 2025 crop from widespread freeze damage. The snow acted as insulation, shielding the roots and preserving the buds that would fuel the next growing season.
Read MoreDecember marks the 7th consecutive month with below-average rainfall for Louisiana. However, monthly rain totals demonstrated a substantial gradient across the state, averaging under 2.00” for the northern 1/3rd of the state but running near-normal to above normal (4.00” to 6.00”+) across much of southern Louisiana.
Read MoreEach year, the Louisiana Association of Conservation Districts awards a distinguished member of the conservation community the Louisiana Conservation Champion Award.
This year's recipient is Ronald Ard, of West Feliciana Parish.
Read MoreA Red Flag Warning and Wind Advisory are in effect as more than three dozen wildfires ignited across Louisiana over the weekend, fueled by drought conditions and strong winds.
Read MoreSince 2019, LSU Diagnostics has worked in close partnership with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries to provide surveillance testing for Chronic Wasting Disease in the state’s deer population. That collaboration led to a significant milestone in 2022 when CWD was detected for the first time in deer along the Mississippi and Louisiana border.
Read MoreFire crews across Louisiana are continuing to monitor and mop up multiple wildfires that ignited over the weekend, fueled by dry vegetation, low humidity, and gusty winds. State forestry officials say dozens of fires sparked across the state, with most now contained but still posing concerns due to lingering hotspots.
Read MoreA new generation of startups is reshaping one of Louisiana’s biggest legacy industries: agriculture.
From rice fields in Acadia Parish to sugarcane stretches along the Mississippi River, farming is both a cultural identity and a financial engine. But as climate volatility intensifies and labor shortages squeeze growers, agricultural technology (agtech) is taking off to help farms adapt to modern challenges.
Read MoreToday’s chickens grow faster and bigger than ever before. While this might not sound like a good thing, it is. These birds are also healthier, more affordable to grow, and feed more people than ever before.
Read MoreRAFI’s grantmaking programs aim to support farmers across the Southeast U.S. and Caribbean islands in their efforts to access land and infrastructure, transition to sustainable practices, and recover from disasters and farm crises. Since the 1990s, our grantmaking has evolved to reflect shifts in the agricultural landscape and our growing focus on sustainability, equity, and resilience in farming communities.
Read MoreMany people want agriculture to be perfect: perfectly sustainable, perfectly efficient, perfectly transparent. The challenge is that agriculture has never been, and will never be, perfect. This isn’t because farmers don’t care or aren’t trying for perfection, but because the very foundation of agriculture as a whole depends on so many variables.
Read MoreUSDA is asking farmers and other stakeholders to help examine how USDA can improve its data collection and analysis.
Read MoreA broad coalition of U.S. aquaculture, fishing, and seafood industry organizations, including Louisiana Farm Bureau’s Crawfish Advisory Committee, have submitted a letter to congressional leaders urging swift passage of the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act (H.R. 2715 / S. 3213).
Read MoreBrandi Shelley, a registered intensive care unit nurse at Ochsner West Bank hospital, has a passion for the bayou. She can't stay away from the water.
Shelley owns Shelley Farms, an oyster farm in Bayou Hertesa in Port Sulphur in Plaquemines Parish. She also part-owner of Terry Shelley's Shucking House with her brother and father. The oyster farm and distribution company services Louisiana, Texas and Kentucky.
Read MoreLouisiana farmers and agricultural leaders are responding to the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down President Trump’s sweeping tariffs, saying the ruling leaves an already volatile industry with more uncertainty.
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