ARLINGTON, VA – On this week’s episode of
The Rice Stuff podcast, co-host Lesley Dixon recounts her recent adventures at the 87th International Rice Festival in Crowley, Louisiana, from judging cooking competitions to VIP seats on the parade route.
The
episode includes interviews with many of the festival’s heavy hitters. Festival president, Joshua Spell, explains the event’s history and cultural significance and provides an inside look at how one of Louisiana’s largest and longest-running agricultural festivals goes off without a hitch every year. Dixon was also able to sit down with both the incoming and outgoing International Rice Festival Queens, the 87th Alana Abshire and the 86th Isabella Hardy (respectively), to hear their insight, advice, and big plans for the future.
The episode also includes conversations with Farmer of the Year Troy Fruge, sponsor Robbie Trahan, and winner of the Chef de Riz title in this year’s rice cooking contest, Alex Theall, all of whom expound on what a special place the festival holds in the southwest Louisiana community—all three of them have been attending the event their entire lives.
New episodes of
The Rice Stuff are published on the second and fourth Tuesday of every month and can be found on your favorite podcast services or
www.TheRiceStuffPodcast.com.