For 27 years, new and early career rice farmers have received assistance directly from experts as part of the Louisiana Rice Research Verification Program.

The program connects producers to LSU AgCenter Extension agents and rice specialists who visit each participating farm to teach best management practices and research-backed methods, said Ronnie Levy, the state rice specialist who directs the program.

While the program aims to assist producers in improving yields and sustainability, it also provides a training opportunity for extension agents and crop consultants.

“The verification program takes research results directly to the farm and puts them into practice,” Levy said.

The Louisiana Rice Research Verification Program is funded by the Louisiana Rice Research Board.

Four producers participated in the program during 2024, with program farms located in Acadia, Allen, Jefferson Davis and Vermilion parishes. A fifth farm in central Louisiana could not participate because weather delays during planting season led the producer to plant an alternative crop, Levy said.

Weekly visits to each farm allow the AgCenter specialists to give advice and track progress. The extension agents and rice specialists maintain records of planting dates, treatments, harvest dates and yield data.

“This gives us an opportunity to make sure that the recommendations and things we're recommending or suggesting do work and have positive effects,” Levy said.

On average, the rice fields used in the verification program see higher yields. This year, most of the planting was done by drill seeding and was completed early in the spring, but some planting was delayed by rain.

“It started raining, and it was a long time before we were able to get back in the fields in south Louisiana, almost a month,” Levy said.

The fields that were planted earlier produced very well, while the fields that were planted later were hit with disease and weather conditions, Levy said. Summer rains affected the harvest of the fields that were planted later, and bird damage affected some, he said.

“I tell people you can't beat Mother Nature,” Levy said. “We have to live within that realm, but we try to do things in a timely manner and that's one of the important things in rice production.”

Producers in the program planted different varieties of rice, depending on their needs, Levy said. The main varieties included Avant, an early maturing variety developed at the AgCenter H. Rouse Caffey Rice Research Station; PVL03, which was also developed at the Rice Research Station and can be treated with Provisia herbicide to control red rice and resist weedy rice; and RiceTec RT7523, which is tolerant to other herbicides.

All the producers involved in the Louisiana Rice Research Verification Program planned to harvest ratoon crops, and they all plan to produce crawfish in the fields this season.

Rice farmer Connor Popeck (center in red shirt) poses with members of the Louisiana Rice Research Verification Program team in a rice field. Photo provided by Ronnie Levy

Rice farmer Colin Lawson (right) poses with Ronnie Levy, the AgCenter state rice specialist and director of the Louisiana Rice Verification Program

Rice farmer Jamie Stelly (right) poses with members of the Louisiana Rice Research Verification Program team. Photos provided by Ronnie Levy