| | Crawfish is one of the most popular Louisiana commodities. Ray McClain, LSU AgCenter crawfish researcher, prepares a batch. (Photo by Bruce Schultz) |
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| | The 2009 strawberry crop is coming in early this year. (Photo by Johnny Morgan) |
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| | Gerald Roberts, retired LSU AgCenter agent in St. Landry Parish, shows some prime Louisiana sweet potatoes. (Photo by Bruce Schultz) |
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2008 had many ups and downs for Louisiana farmers. The outlook was good as the New Year started, but economic and weather conditions didn’t remain favorable. LSU AgCenter economist Kurt Guidry looks back at 2008 and ahead to 2009.
Many farmers started out 2008 with plenty of optimism. Commodity prices were high, and growing conditions were fairly good during the first half of the year.
But things changed. Skyrocketing fuel and fertilizer costs cut deep into farmers' profits, and then the weather turned. Two hurricanes, first Gustav on September 1 and then Ike on September 11, certainly helped to put an additional damper on producers’ views for 2008.
Guidry estimates hurricanes Gustav and Ike caused $1 billion worth of damage to Louisiana agriculture. One bright spot was the weather following the September storms.
“For about a three- to four-week period after Hurricane Ike, we had a relatively dry period, which helped producers get back in the field.”
Farmers aren’t optimistic heading into 2009. Although production costs are falling, so are commodity prices. Guidry says the current global economic troubles could lower demand for Louisiana commodities.
“There is a lot of uncertainty on how the economic conditions will affect the demand for commodities not only domestically, but internationally – our export market.”
Although the credit crisis doesn’t seem to be affecting agricultural lending agencies, Guidry says the question isn’t will there be money to lend to Louisiana producers, but rather, “Are producers going to be able to come up with a farm plan that is going to have enough cash-flow potential to make these lenders feel comfortable about making these loans?”
The crop landscape will look a little different in 2009. About 200,000 acres of wheat was planted in the fall, which is about half what farmers planted the year before.
“That’s primarily because of market conditions at planting time. Wheat prices were significantly down, and input prices were still relatively high.”
Guidry expects cotton and corn to lose acres in 2009.
“We’ve seen nitrogen prices come down, but from a historical standpoint, they’re still relatively high. Given those costs, we’re looking at corn yields that need to be pretty substantial to generate profits at current market prices.”
Soybeans and rice will likely pick up some acres. According to Guidry’s prediction, those crops will have the most potential to make a profit.
“I think rice has a chance to increase in some areas, particularly in the northern part of the state, because I think cotton acres are really going to continue to have some difficulty maintaining the acres they had even last year.”
Guidry emphasized those are just predictions because things can change.
Louisiana agriculture facts:
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Agriculture contributed nearly $11 billion to the Louisiana economy in 2007. Data for 2008 are still being compiled.
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The crop most valuable to the Louisiana economy in 2007 was trees; forestry contributed $4.2 billion.
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The animal commodity most valuable in 2007 was poultry at $1.7 billion.
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Of the 27.8 million acres of Louisiana land, about 14 million is in forests and 7.8 million acres are farmed.
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Louisiana includes 27,000 farms, 90 percent of which are family farms.
Read these news stories about Louisiana crops:
LSU AgCenter announces aromatic rice variety
Snow damages Louisiana nursery industry, retail garden centers
Rice farmers eye 2009 crop picture
New ethanol crops could fuel La. agriculture
2009 Louisiana wheat acres down by half
The LSU AgCenter is one of 11 institutions of higher education in the Louisiana State University System. Headquartered in Baton Rouge, it provides educational services in every parish and conducts research that contributes to the economic development of the state. The LSU AgCenter does not grant degrees nor benefit from tuition increases. The LSU AgCenter plays an integral role in supporting agricultural industries, enhancing the environment, and improving the quality of life through its 4-H youth, family and community programs.