Illinois: The Prairie State Touts Its U.S. Rice Production
EMILY WOODALL
MCCLURE, ILLINOIS
Ducks Unlimited hosted their second Illinois Rice Farm Field Tour here last week, and Illinois legislators, State Senator Terri Bryant and State Representative Paul Jacobs, accepted the invitation to learn more about rice production and milling in their state. The rice grown in southern Illinois is the northernmost rice grown in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley.
The tour was hosted by Blake Gerard at his fourth-generation operation, Gerard Farms. Gerard and fellow Illinois rice farmers, father and son, Joe and Sam Schneider, discussed how they each started in the rice industry due to the abundance of water in their area.
“Our farm headquarters are less than five miles from the Mississippi River in two directions so it’s not uncommon for our eastern most fields to be too wet to plant anything except rice,” Gerard explained. “In addition to this ground being best suited for growing rice, it also provides habitat for waterfowl migrating through the Mississippi Flyway. The geese have already started migrating and making use of our harvested rice acres.”
They also talked about the few state and federal programs available for their rice operations, mentioning programs that other states have that could be beneficial to them, especially during the current tough financial times impacting everyone in agriculture.
Patrick Dill and Tony Jaco, rice specialists who work with Ducks Unlimited on the Rice Stewardship Partnership, spoke about the technical and financial assistance that the Partnership has been able to bring directly to producers.
Following the farm tour, the group departed for Scott City, Missouri, to tour Sam and Meagan Schneider’s rice mill, Inland Cape Rice. The Schneider’s started Inland Cape during the COVID pandemic to fill a need in their area.
“We source our rice from Illinois, Missouri, and northeast Arkansas,” said Sam Schneider. “This was a large investment for us but we believe whole-heartedly in the rice we market and the producers who grow it. Unfortunately, due to many circumstances outside of our control, you can be the best conservationist, accountant, best everything and still be struggling to farm another year.”
At the end of the tour and lunch, Casey Bergthold, director of conservation programs for Ducks Unlimited in the Great Lakes/Atlantic Region, thanked Bryant and Jacobs for taking the time to travel to Illinois rice country and learn how rice production – from the field to the finished product – benefits waterfowl, wetlands, and people. ∆
EMILY WOODALL
USA RICE FEDERATION