Hugh Andre can’t get enough of the smell of the dirt.

As a first generation farmer, Andre loves what he does. And he does it each and every day he can.

Andre is from Iberia parish. He went to school at Catholic High and began farming in 1998 where he started with 75 acres of land and built it to 8,000 acres that is today. Andre started his career from scratch. A career that is hard for most. But for some, like myself, it just came natural.

“It’s in the blood,” Andre said. “It’s just what I love to do.”

He is a first generation farmer. He is part owner of HMC Farms in New Iberia with his brothers, Mike and Chris, who joined the business in 2003. At HMC Farms, they grow local staples, like sugarcane, rice, crawfish and soybeans.

HMC Farms, like most farms in and around the surrounding area thrives here and it’s what makes the business so important.

“Farming is a wonderful industry,” Andre said. “It is the heartbeat and backbone of our area.

Andre has a key to succeeding in the farming industry that he uses in his everyday life: If you work hard and stay on top of your work, this industry will be very good to you, he said.

According to him, it also takes a lot of dedication.

“You have to love it to do it,” Andre said. “You have to have it in your blood. Because if you don’t love it, I don’t think you would be successful at it.”

Watching the process for Andre is something that can’t compare to anything else. Watching it grow from the start of the finished product of raising the crop is an accomplishment he is proud of.

“It’s always something different and a challenge each and every year,” Andre said. “And it’s a way of life that I love. I wouldn’t want to do anything else.”

Andre never went into farming because of the money. He went into it for the passion that he feels when he runs his hands through the dirt.

“My love is farming,” Andre said. “It’s a way of life. It raised our families.”

Hard work. Dedication. Discipline. These are all virtues that Andre demonstrates in his life. While it certainly hasn’t been easy for the 48 year old. He knows the grind is worth it. A father of three boys, Matthew, 20, Izaac, 15, and his youngest Spencer, 9.

Andre said if they want to follow in his footsteps and make this a second generation of farmers for the Andres, that is fine to him, he said. And if they don’t that is OK, too.

“But they have to be willing to love it to do it,” Andre said.

Each and every day Andre wakes up to work his farm, he does so with a passion that is unmatched. He has always wanted to do what he does. And doesn’t plan on stopping anything soon

“I’ve never woken up and felt like not going to work,” Andre said. “Not once.”

Farming in New Iberia is an industry standard

The farming industry in New Iberia has been here for over 200 years – and that doesn’t look like it will stop anytime soon.

Andre has been farming for more than 23 of those two plus centuries. The world has changed so much in that time. But what has remained the same: New Iberia’s love and passion for farming.

“That is a long time,” Andre said. “When you think of an industry that has survived on this planet, for 200 years, that is pretty impressive.”

The farming industry in New Iberia has seen its ups and downs but the people in it, like Andre, are resilient and still push forward no matter the issue.

“And that is Acadiana in itself,” Andre said. “We are some resilient people. We go through droughts, we go through hurricanes, we go through freezes. We take the knots on our head but we wake up and keep going.”

New Iberia is known for many things, but farming is one the major assets of this community. It makes up a large part of the Teche.

According to a 2017 Census of Agriculture by the USDA, which puts out statistics by parish every five years, New Iberia has over 300 farms in the parish. More so, they have made over $57 million in market value of products sold.

Like most places, Iberia relies heavily on the sugar mills and the products it produces. And in turn, products are created through tools that are sold locally and the end result of the products are produced and sold locally.

Everyone depends on each other to thrive.

“The sugar mill means a lot of local jobs,” Andre said. “The money from the sugar industry is a huge amount of money that flows through our community to keep it thriving and growing. It’s a huge part of the economy here.”

The future of farming is here to stay. People need crops and for Andre and farmers like him, they are relayed on to work hard each day for the communities they serve. And while things are tough for most in the area, you have to continue to push and be the best you can be.

“I think we have big challenges coming up in our industry,” Andre said. “The expenses are high in everything. But with those challenges, you can’t afford to make any mistakes.”

The challenges in farming today

Throughout the last few years, farming has been challenging for some.

From devastating hurricanes and floods to freezing and drought with record-high temperatures, farming in New Iberia and its surrounding areas have been difficult as of late.

Hugh Andre knows all too well of those challenges. But he takes it one day at a time.

“One thing I know, you can’t control the weather,” Andre said. “We really depend on the weather for everything.”

In reality, only a small percentage of your work helps to produce the products. The rest, Andre said, is up to Mother Nature. It’s important that everything you can do yourself is done and you can have control of.

One of Mother Nature’s biggest challenges is Hurricane Season, and from June to November, its a stressful time for farmers like Andre. As farmers try to plant their soybeans, sugarcane or even rice, one major storm can wipe them all away.

“When you have to face a hurricane, and if it comes, there isn’t really anything you can do about it,” Andre said. “Expect to pick up the pieces and go forward.”

Hurricanes are ways of life for many in South Louisiana. New Iberia especially. They have come through and damaged crops, homes and so much more for as long as we can remember.

“We have been through them for 250 years and we are still here,” Andre said. “We have always had to deal with the weather conditions. And we have always done it.”

The most recent challenge in weather conditions has been the extreme heat and drought over the last weeks of August. The result is crops are far behind schedule without the water, Andre said.

“With the heat, a lot of the canes are burning up,” Andre said. “We really need rain to have an average crop this year.”

The drought has been a huge damper on the farming industry. When it goes weeks without rain, some people have the option to water their plants. The majority of them don’t.

“There really isn’t much you can do about it,” Andre said. “The water has to fall from the sky in this industry to really make a difference.”

While he waits, like everyone else, for the rain to fall, Andre said being resilient is the key to get through all of these recent challenges. And what comes will come. And they will be ready.

“Whatever has come, we are going to take it,” Andre said.