Louisiana strawberry farmers are scrambling to save their crop after the recent snap of cold weather settled over the region this week.
Whitney Wallace, LSU AgCenter agent in Tangipahoa Parish, says many farmers have double covered their strawberries to hold warmer air near the plants and the frigid temperatures out. Using covers to protect the crop impacts the farmers’ bottom line and increases production costs.
Wallace expects growers to begin removing the covers as temperatures rise in the next few days. Growers will likely lose any blooms that were already on the plants, she says. That will cut into the early crop that helps growers cover operating costs, and set the fruit back two to three weeks.
“This time of the year, berries can bring in a higher market price,” she says. “So yes, this will hurt some farmers, but hopefully not all.”
Strawberry production in the state has been on the decline for the past decade, mainly due to a shortage of labor, urbanization and farmers advancing in age, the LSU AgCenter says.
In 2016, 73 farmers grew strawberries Louisiana, and production was valued at $17 million, according to the LSU AgCenter Ag Summary. There were 369 acres in the state, with 290 acres in Tangipahoa Parish.
