By Katie Navarro

CROWLEY, La. (Acadiana News First) – The rice harvest is coming to a close, with farmers reporting an average yield for the season.

Tyler Musgrove, a rice extension specialist with the LSU AG Center, said this year’s yield report shows more variability from parish to parish than in previous years.

“But when we really dive into the yield report, this year, something different is that we’re seeing a lot more variability in yield reports from parish to parish, especially when we account for different varieties,” Musgrove said.

Acreage down 17%

This year saw a 17% reduction in rice acreage. Fewer farmers planted because of record low prices and record high input costs.

Paul Zaunbrecher, a rice farmer in Acadia Parish, said production costs have risen sharply.

“I think the, the, the biggest thing with rice production right now is our production spend just got so high. We need to export half of our crop. We’ve got record high imports that are coming into the country. So we’re trying to combat that with some varieties,” Zaunbrecher said.

Competing with subsidized imports

American rice farmers are working to offer consumers something they cannot find elsewhere. Zaunbrecher said that is difficult in a saturated industry.

He pointed to India as an example of a competitor benefiting from government subsidies.

“Take India, for example. They’re getting the subsidized up to 80% of their production cost. I mean, it becomes impossible to compete with a country that comes here and dumps the rice on the markets,” Zaunbrecher said.

Published Date: September 2, 2026