WASHINGTON, March 12 -- Sen. John Kennedy issued the following press release:
Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, encouraged Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin to permit Louisiana to use a pesticide required to combat rice delphacid infestations.
Rice delphacids, invasive insects that originated in South and Central America, feed directly on rice plants and open the door to diseases like the rice hoja blanca virus.
Rice delphacids have had a profound impact on Texas rice production since 2015, and in 2025, they were spotted in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.
As a result, the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry requested in December 2025 that the EPA a...