Battling Hogs, Picking Berries, and Farming Abroad This week on TWILA, we follow the fight against invasive species threatening farms and forests and explore how agritourism is growing through pick-your-own experiences. Louisiana 4-H students travel to Ireland for lessons in farming abroad, while soybean buyers from North Africa visit West Baton Rouge to see American production firsthand. Plus, one tractor door gives farmers a run for their money in this week’s Boost!

Catch all that and more in this episode of TWILA!

From Gator Eggs to Irish Green Fields in this episode of TWILA!

This week, we start in the Louisiana marsh with LSU’s interim president learning the hands-on process of collecting alligator eggs—a vital part of conservation and a $100 million industry. Then we head to Ireland with Louisiana 4-H to explore dairy farms, plant fresh produce, and see how farm-to-table works across the Atlantic. We hop back across the pond to follow Louisiana’s jasmine rice from research to harvest to a delicious crawfish sushi stack in Feasting on Agriculture.

From Ruston to Washington, D.C., and all the way to Ireland, Louisiana agriculture is making waves. In this week’s episode of TWILA, Speaker Mike Johnson hears directly from Louisiana farmers during a special town hall, while 4 Sisters Rice represents the state at a national celebration of farmers markets. Louisiana 4-H students journey overseas for an unforgettable ag adventure, and an innovative aquaponics facility in New Orleans shows what’s possible when tradition meets technology. Tune in for a closer look at the people and ideas driving agriculture forward—in Louisiana and beyond!

From Century Farms to Global Fields—we’re covering it all in this week’s episode of TWILA! Livestock ranchers are facing rising costs and relentless rain, while rice farmers look to the future with new high-yield varieties. We follow Louisiana 4-H students as they explore agriculture abroad in Ireland, and federal leaders roll out a new action plan to strengthen and secure U.S. farms. We also celebrate families who’ve kept their farms running for over a century and join a USDA field tour that’s connecting policy to pasture. And in this week’s TWILA Boost, one young farmer finds the perfect way to cool off—with a little help from the family dog and a lot of mud.

Usually when we talk about disasters in Louisiana this time of the year it is a hurricane. However, it's the extreme heat and drought wearing on Louisiana farmers.  This week we learn how lack of rain and high temperatures are impacting grain crops, sugarcane, timber and cattle in every corner of the state and how farmers can make their voices heard. Plus, we get an update on the upcoming Farm Bill. 

This week we take you to the streets of downtown Baton Rouge, the forests of Vernon Parish, and a lot of places in between. 

 Karl Wiggers shows us how the triple digit temperatures are impacting Louisiana’s beef industry. Trevor Williams takes us to the Red Stick Farmers Market where farmers are bringing their bounty to community tables. Neil Melancon tells us about an archaeological discovery in the forests of Vernon Parish. Plus, we get a behind-the-scenes look at the 2023 Louisiana Harvest.

In this special episode of Louisiana Farm Life, TWILA’s Avery Davidson sits down with third generation farmer and American Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall and his new bride Jennifer. Zippy tells us about his upbringing family’s dairy farm, and how a conversation with his father grew into a life-long passion for Farm Bureau. They also talk about how Jennifer and Zippy connected after losing their first loves, and the importance of mental health in agriculture.