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• Farmers Looking for Long-Term Farm Bill Play Video

  January 3, 2013 7:20 PM

  Late Tuesday night, Congress passed part of the Farm Bill, keeping many of the existing farm programs in place, including direct payments and crop insurance. The extension passed, keep things in tact this year, but farmers still have some concerns. Dane Hebert is a third generation rice farmer.... more »

• Farmers Sue Barge Co. For Damaging Leland Bowman Locks Play Video

  February 7, 2012 10:43 PM

  Roughly 45 Acadiana farmers are filing a lawsuit against a barge company for damaging the Leland Bowman locks in the Mermentau Basin. They are claiming that the damaged locks are letting too much saltwater into their farmland and hurting agriculture. Crawfish, rice and cattle are all in jeopardy this... more »

• Rice Farmers Pay Up for Research Play Video

  January 24, 2012 6:52 PM

  Louisiana rice farmers voted overwhelmingly to keep a referendum that funds research and promotion, totaling in the millions of dollars. For every 100 lbs of rice sold, farmers pay five cents for research and three cents for promoting the state's rice industry. The vote comes every five years, and this... more »

• Cattle farmers struggle with drought

  January 5, 2012 9:01 AM

  MONTEGUT, La. (AP) - On Herdis Neil's farm near Montegut, the land is so dry that livestock consistently wander into the drainage ditch in search of water at the bottom and get stuck there. That's what happened Tuesday evening. Neil found a calf stuck up to its belly on the... more »

• Hay, Help!

  August 15, 2011 11:47 PM

  Recent wet weather in Acadiana has been welcomed news for many farmers, who've endured a very dry spring. However, farmers in other parts of the state and the country have not been so lucky. In Texas and northern Louisiana, the dry-spell has been a curse for hay farmers, and now... more »

• Drought, Floods Wreak Havoc on Farmers

  June 1, 2011 6:37 PM

  This is a unique year for South Louisiana, as we experience extreme drought and record floods. And this climate is wreaking havoc on Louisiana farms. Where there's water, there's too much of it. At the same time the rest of the state sits parched. "It's adversely affecting crops,... more »

• Frustrated Farmers Vent as Rivers Rise

  May 20, 2011 7:49 AM

  VIDALIA, La. (AP) - An overflow crowd turned out Thursday for a meeting in Vidalia with state and federal agricultural officials. Farmers are suffering from the Mississippi River flood, even though flooding of fields is minimal. A drought, deer being driven into their fields by the rising river, and seepage... more »

• Farmers affected by Gustav, Ike get aid

  December 23, 2010 6:24 AM

  BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - State agriculture officials say more than 1,000 Louisiana farmers will share $5.7 million to help them recover losses suffered after Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008. Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain says the funding, announced Thursday, was part of the 2008 Farm Recovery Program... more »

• Farmers worry about strawberries

  December 7, 2010 9:22 AM

  NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Louisiana's strawberry farmers worry that covers spread over their plants for the past week may not be enough to protect tender blossoms and ripening fruit from this week's deep freezes. Strawberries are Louisiana's leading fruit crop. The LSU AgCenter says 397 acres brought a gross farm... more »

• Deadline to Apply for the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers Program is Sept. 23

  September 14, 2010 12:06 PM

  JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Time is running out for catfish farmers and others to sign up for a U.S. Department of Agriculture program offering training, cash benefits and government-funded consultation that might include advice to get out of the business. The deadline to apply for the Trade Adjustment Assistance for... more »

• Senator Landrieu to speak at Black Farmers Summit

  August 24, 2010 10:51 AM

  WASHINGTON - United States Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., will speak at the Fairness Now for Black Farmers Summit in Baton Rouge on Tuesday, August 24, at 1 p.m.The summit will be hosted by the National Black Farmers Association. Sen. Landrieu will join the National Black Farmers Association in... more »

• Farmers Create Habitats for Migrating Birds

  July 29, 2010 6:48 AM

  MAMOU, La. (AP) - Water gurgling from a well is flooding Craig Gautreaux's rice and crawfish fields, turning the farm into a wetland for migratory birds whose usual Gulf of Mexico wintering grounds are threatened by the oil spill. Across eight states, farmers such as Gautreaux are inundating fallow fields... more »

• Feds Could Pay Farmers for Wildlife Habitat

  July 20, 2010 9:29 AM

  GUEYDAN, La. (AP) - U.S. agriculture officials say a new program could compensate farmers for agricultural practices that provide habitat to wildlife. Scott Edwards of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service says the program could pay farmers for creating mud flats in their fields, pumping water onto... more »

• Cold could mean slow crawfish farm harvest

  February 22, 2010 11:59 AM

  BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Earlier this year, Crawfish farmers expected heavy rains to bring a bountiful harvest, but that was before periods of subfreezing temperatures pushed the mud bugs back into their holes. Now producers wonder if early projections of a strong crop will pan out. And some restaurant... more »

• Refinery bringing hope of good times to Louisiana sugar

  February 19, 2010 9:15 AM

  NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Louisiana sugar cane growers and the sugar processing industry are uniting to get the product from the fields to the consumer in a direct line. Cane growers hope the deal will boost their $2 billion annual industry, which has struggled with flat prices over two decades... more »

• Louisiana Rice Farmers Lending Helping Hand To Haiti

  January 22, 2010 6:33 PM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - Louisiana farmers and a Lake Charles mill are giving at least seven tons of rice for Haitians affected by last week's earthquake. The LSU AgCenter says the Louisiana Rice Growers Association is buying two tons of rice, and Farmer's Rice Mill is giving five tons... more »

• $29 Million In Assistance Announced For Dairy Farmers

  January 6, 2010 4:50 PM

  Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M., said he is pleased the USDA has chosen to implement the Dairy Economic Loss Assistance Payment Program (DELAP) that will distribute $290 million to eligible dairy farmers. The measure was suggested by the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) in... more »

• Local Farmers Prep Livestock for Cold

  January 5, 2010 1:59 PM

  Acadiana is home to almost as many cattle and horses as people, so local farmers are working hard to protect these animals-- a big source of revenue-- from the cold. For months they have been preparing the livestock for winter through proper feeding and care. "The most important... more »

• Louisiana Farmers Lose Over $300 Million In 2009

  December 16, 2009 5:10 PM

  NEW ORLEANS (AP) - New estimates show Louisiana farmers stand to lose $363 million in revenue for major row crops due to late-season drenching rains. That's nearly $90 million more than in late October, when Louisiana State University agricultural economist Kurt Guidry made preliminary estimates with much of the cotton,... more »

• 53 parishes declared natural disaster

  November 30, 2009 3:41 PM

  Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced that U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has declared 53 parishes as primary natural disaster areas and ten parishes as contiguous disaster areas due to a combination of disasters including a severe drought and excessive rainfall that caused production losses for farmers throughout the state.... more »

• NutraCea restructure includes La. facility

  November 12, 2009 6:50 AM

  MERMENTAU, La. (AP) California-based NutraCea says its rice bran stabilization facility in Mermentau is among assets that would secure new financing the company is seeking as part of a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy it has filed in Arizona. The facility is at the Louisiana Rice Mill in Mermentau. ... more »

• State starts Internet program sells La. products

  October 27, 2009 2:01 PM

  BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - State officials say a new Internet marketing program is expected to increase sales for Louisiana farmers and fishermen. The state agriculture and wildlife and fisheries departments are contracting with MarketMaker, through which wholesale buyers, restaurants, grocers and the general public can find and purchase products... more »

• Sugarcane Crops- A Reason to Celebrate in Iberia Parish

  September 24, 2009 1:46 PM

  The sugarcane season officially begins this weekend with the start of Iberia Parish's "Sugarcane Festival." This season is looking good-- a reason for farmers to celebrate. After hurricanes Gustav and Ike last year, sugarcane farmers got off to a late and rocky start. Their crops were severely damaged and... more »