Sugarcane burning and cutting season has begun in South Louisiana. For the next few weeks, our skies will be smoky and our roads muddy (when we get rain). I just want to remind everyone to be careful if you are driving on country roads as visibility is sometimes reduced near burning/cutting site, the roads can be slippery, and we have to share the roads with the slow moving cane trucks.
Farmers burn the sugarcane before cutting it because it reduces transportation and processing costs. The burning removes much of the leafy material around the cane, including the tops, that produces little to no sugar.
The sugarcane industry in Louisiana is the oldest and most historic in the country. Sugarcane was brought here in 1751 by the Jesuit priests and by 1795, granulated sugar was produced on a commercial scale by Etienne deBore at Audubon Park in New Orleans.
Today, some 30,000+ people are employed by the sugarcane industry in Louisiana and approximately 450,000 acres in 25 of our 64 parishes are used for its production.
If you are looking for sugarcane farmland in Acadiana, send me an email. I might just be able to help!
Originally Posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News
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