Folks in Louisiana love rice! In fact, there’s a saying there that before they decide what they’re going to eat for dinner, they cook rice. It’s a staple in their famous Creole and Cajun cuisines, and a key ingredient in farmer Jason Waller’s favorite dish – jambalaya. “What I grow to feed consumers is the same crop I feed my family. I’ve been farming here for twenty years, sowing and reaping the same land that three generations worked before me. It’s in my blood.” 

It’s not just Louisianans who love U.S. rice – 85 percent of all the rice Americans eat is grown right here. “Most people you meet are not aware that rice is produced in the United States,” says Jason. 

From Louisiana to Arkansas, California, Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas, American farmers grow long, medium, and short grain, and varieties such as arborio, basmati, jasmine, and japonica that work with every type of cuisine. There are no hard and fast rules for which type of U.S.-grown rice to use in any particular recipe - it’s simply a matter of personal preference.

“We grow a safe, healthy, affordable crop that is gluten free, without GMOs, in a clean, conservation-rich environment. No matter what the American consumer is cooking up, I can’t think of a better food they could buy that would check all those boxes than U.S. rice.”