By Carah Hart

Jarrod Hardke tells Brownfield “it’s most often true that if it’s a pretty good corn year, it’s a pretty good rice year. We normally harvest corn before we start harvesting the first rice so you get a good, early barometer. But this year, even before the combines started to roll you could tell, maybe that’s not going to be true this year. That’s how it turned out.”

He says the wet start to the growing season contributed to the variability in rice.

“From a yield standpoint, there’s very high yields to extreme lows and all points in-between. There’s variability from field-to-field and within fields. We’re coming off the 2024 season when we set a new state average record. But this year, it’s below that.”

Hardke says some instability in temperatures earlier this month led to quick over-drying of some of the rice, and has impacted some milling quality. However, he says the more consistent weather moving forward should help.

USDA says the Arkansas rice harvest is 74 percent complete, ahead average. Hardke says the remainder of rice harvest is expected to last another month.

Published Date: September 23, 2025