STARKVILLE, Miss. ( WJTV ) – The growing season is wrapping up on Mississippi’s 2024 rice crop, and experts anticipate a slightly higher yield but depressed prices.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that rice harvest began the first week of August. As of August 11, the crop was rated 15% in excellent condition and 82% in either fair or good condition.

This year, officials said Mississippi rice growers are expected to produce 31% more rice than last year. Rice acreage is expected to yield 7,500 pounds per acre, up 30 pounds per acre from what was harvested in 2023.

Jason Bond, weed scientist with the Mississippi State University (MSU) Extension Service, said the growing season was decently smooth for rice this year.

“With harvest only just beginning, optimism is high,” said Bond. “Weather has been agreeable throughout most of the year until the last few weeks of late July and early August with excessive heat. It remains to be seen how that will influence yield since harvest is only just beginning.”

Disease was not a major issue for rice this year. Tom Allen, Extension plant pathologist, said sheath blight is the crop’s No. 1 disease management concern, but reports of its appearance have been normal.

“I’ve received lots of questions related to kernel smut prevention, since some years that can be an issue, especially when it rains following automatic fungicide applications,” Allen said. “Some of the rice crop was likely exposed to high temperatures during flowering and pollination, so I expect some questions to come up related to bacterial panicle blight. Normally, bacterial panicle blight is not an issue, but the disease occurs more frequently during seasons with high temperatures during pollination.”

Mississippi growers are expected to harvest 156,000 acres this year, up from the 120,000 acres harvested in 2023. Mississippi is No. 6 in the nation in rice production, with Bolivar and Tunica counties having the state’s most rice acreage.

Officials said high input costs remain a challenge to rice growers. USDA projected the average farm price in 2024 for rice to be $14.50 per hundredweight. That is down from $16.10 in 2023.

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