CROWLEY, LA-- Honorees at this year's International Rice Festival have been announced ahead of the September 19 Festival Honoree Social and Queen's Ball held here.
Herbert E. Schilling II of Lafayette, Louisiana has been named Festival Honoree. Schilling is President of the Schilling Distributing Co., Inc. and has served on the prestigious Anheuser-Busch Advisory Panel. Anheuser-Busch is the reported largest single domestic user of U.S. rice. Through Schilling’s partnership with Louisiana Rice Mill, L.L.C. he has established a close association with the rice industry and has maintained relationships that began under the tutorship of his father with rice mills in Acadiana. 
Jeffery Sylvester of Ville Platte, Louisiana was named Rice Farmer of the Year. A fourth- generation farmer, Sylvester partners with his two brothers to farm 5,500 acres of rice, crawfish, and soybeans. Extremely active in the community and the rice industry, Sylvester is an alum of the Rice Foundation Leadership Class, a past board member of the Louisiana Rice Council, the current president of the Evangeline Parish Rice Growers Association and the Louisiana Rice Growers Association, and a board member of the Louisiana Rice Political Action Committee. Sylvester was also instrumental in the formation of the Central Louisiana Rice Growers Association.
The International Rice Festival announced that Tyler Joseph Breaux of Iota, Louisiana is the Junior Farmer of the Year. Tyler is 17 years old and the son of Jarrod Allen Breaux and Kim Sittig Breaux. A fourth-generation rice farmer, he and his family farm rice, soybeans, and crawfish.
One of Louisiana’s largest and oldest agricultural festivals, the International Rice Festival draws thousands of attendees who travel far and wide to take part in the festivities. The four-day celebration highlights the importance of the rice industry and offers various special events that are rich in tradition. This year’s festival will be held October 15-18th here in Crowley.