Tagged: farming

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says Louisiana's harvests this year include record yields for at least five crops — corn, soybeans, cotton, grain sorghum and rice. Sugarcane is still being harvested, but could be near a record.

Economist Kurt Guidry says reasons include more irrigation, better crop varieties and luck with the weather.

Rice expert John Saichuk cautions that a rice disease called blast may have cut the harvest below the federal estimate of 6,500 pounds per acre. And AgCenter surveys put the record yield at last year's 6,717 pounds per acre.

When Hurricane Isaac blew through Louisiana, it caused an estimated $100 million worth of losses in agriculture. About 40% of the state’s citrus crop was destroyed, and in Plaquemines Parish, where most of our citrus comes from, nearly half the citrus acres were flooded.

Farmers in the worst hit areas are cleaning up. Meanwhile, the luckier farmers worry about the next time. All of them told Eve Abrams the future of Louisiana’s commercial citrus industry does not look good.

Hurricane Isaac's winds paired with recent rains made a rough start for this year's sugar-cane grinding season. But industry officials are optimistic that weather will improve this month, helping the process along.

Jim Simon, general manager of the American Sugar Cane League, tells The Courier several mills started grinding last week. The remaining mills are scheduled to begin work this week.

Simon says the sugar cane industry has an annual impact of about $1.1 billion in Louisiana.

The LSU AgCenter estimates Hurricane Isaac has cut Louisiana's pecan harvest by 15 percent.

Charlie Graham, professor for fruit and nut crops, says that would bring the total to just over 11 million pounds — down from pre-storm estimates of 13 million to 13.5 million pounds. It still would be up from last year's 9 million pounds.

Graham says prices are likely to be similar to 2011 levels.

Last November, farm prices ran from $1.25 to $3.50 a pound, with most varieties starting above $2.