NEW ORLEANS, LA – The U.S. rice industry reinforces its longstanding commitment to conservation and sustainability each year by recognizing industry leaders to showcase their stewardship efforts in conserving and efficiently using natural resources while bolstering wildlife habitat and biodiversity.

At the Annual Rice Awards Luncheon for the 2025 USA Rice Outlook Conference on Monday, California rice grower and chair of the USA Rice Farmers Conservation Committee Leo LaGrande presented the 2025 Distinguished Conservation Achievement Award to Tim Johnson, whose dedication has transformed not only the California rice industry but also how we think about conservation in agriculture.

In his role as CEO and president of the California Rice Commission, Tim was instrumental in creating the Commission through statutory actions, unifying the voices of rice growers and marketers across the state. 

He led a transformative shift from burning rice fields to implementing a winter flooding program, creating habitats for waterfowl, and improving environmental stewardship.  Under his guidance, the industry built strong alliances with conservation organizations and became known as an “environmental crop,” backed by rigorous science from UC Davis. 

In another example of his innovative approach, Tim spearheaded an ongoing pilot project raising wild salmon in flooded rice fields during the winter, creating a food source of phytoplankton that is returned to the rivers as needed.

Finally, he developed the California Rice Footprint initiative to protect the minimum acreage needed for habitat goals. 

Tim Johnson’s vision has merged agriculture with environmental stewardship in remarkable ways.

The USA Rice Sustainability Award was created in 2016 to recognize the efforts of all segments of the industry to not only conserve natural resources, but to find innovative ways to address all three pillars of sustainability: environmental, economic, and social sustainability.  A subcommittee of the USA Rice Sustainability Committee chooses the winner based on several criteria, including leadership in the industry and broader sustainability community, and a history of promoting and advancing sustainability through innovative practices. 

Supreme Rice LLC, based in Crowley, Louisiana, is the 2025 USA Rice Sustainability Award recipient  for their longstanding partnership with their farmer customers and for fostering the concept that their farmers are stewards of the land with pride in providing habitat for wildlife, in building soil health, in conservation, and in nurturing the crops grown to feed families.

Over the years, Supreme’s sustainable initiatives in rice production have ranged from supporting and promoting the Louisiana Master Farmer Program, to pilot projects with milled rice customers, to providing custom harvesting services at cost to offset their farmers’ capital expenditures.  While not traditionally thought of as a sustainable program, this service is part of their multifaceted approach to help keep their farmers farming, bringing the benefits of scale and technology to small and medium sized farms with capital limitations.  In custom harvest operations specifically, their team is involved in the entire farming process with their farmers  from varietal selection and field boundary mapping, to planting method decisions and in-season crop scouting. 

Currently ongoing is Supreme’s largest sustainable and farmer-focused initiative yet: Supreme Rice, LLC’s Climate-Smart Initiative (Initiative).  The initiative is part of the Advancing Markets for Producers grant, formerly known as the Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities grant and was awarded in 2023. 

At Supreme, “sustainable rice farming” means farming for the future: for future generations, for future population growth, for the preservation of our natural resources for the future. 

Published Date: December 13, 2025