• By Deborah Willenborg • The 2020 USA Rice Outlook Conference, scheduled for Dec. 9-11, in Austin, Texas, will not be held in-person due to the impossibility of putting on a large trade show and conference in compliance with public health safety guidelines and regulations. The USA Rice Board of Directors met via conference call Sept. 1 to discuss other ... Read More »
This is an exciting time to grow rice in the United States. Advances in technology and innovative practices have revolutionized the industry and made us one of the most sustainable crops in the world. Over the past 30 years, we’ve seen significant decreases in energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, groundbreaking efforts to support conservation and reduction of water use ... Read More »
These are difficult times for us all, to be sure. As I write this, sitting not in my office with a view of the Washington Monument but rather in my home in suburban Maryland, I can’t help but think how much our lives have changed in just one week. I’m trying to imagine what conditions will exist as you read ... Read More »
It’s hard to believe it’s almost spring, and we’re charging forward into another crop year. No doubt as you have been preparing for planting season, you’ve been reflecting on the successes and challenges of previous seasons and applying those practical lessons on your farm. Sustainability goals help offer new solutions every year, saving farmers money, time and resources, and resonating ... Read More »
People have been calling this new decade “The Roaring ’20s.” With the way things have been moving forward on the international trade front, that certainly seems to be the case. New trade developments at the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020 are pushing ahead, and the U.S. rice industry is poised to benefit from international markets as never ... Read More »
Every year around this time, many of us make resolutions, looking forward to the new year and imagining how we can make the world a better place and improve ourselves. It’s a time of new beginnings, fresh starts and optimism! There’s no doubt 2019 was hard: Prices and acreage were down; uncertainty plagued the trade front; and weather, where the ... Read More »
Farmers know better than anyone that not every year is going to be easy, but 2019 has certainly tried our collective patience. With heavy rain and even flooding across the country this spring, planting was delayed and almost 750,000 acres never got planted. With more than half of the U.S. rice crop exported annually, ongoing trade disputes, retaliatory tariffs and ... Read More »
Registration for the USA Rice Outlook Conference, the largest rice-specific event in North America, opened this week. USA Rice has added to the conference this year to ensure the event’s tagline, “If Rice is Your Business, This is Your Meeting,” holds true. “In addition to general sessions with powerful speakers, we will feature more than 15 hours of educational programming ... Read More »
The annual USA Rice Outlook Conference may last only a few days every December, but for us, it’s a year-round job. While the exhibitors are packing up their booths and the attendees are heading home to prepare for the holidays, we’re crouching at the starting gate for the next Outlook. We hit the ground running every January, integrating the lessons ... Read More »
For the past several years, we have been taking on rice pretenders — that’s food marketed as some new-fangled rice that contains no rice at all. And last month, pretenders were dealt a heavy blow, thanks to a common-sense bill passed by the Arkansas Legislature that promotes truth in labeling of agricultural products. The bill establishes a standard of identity ... Read More »
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