Texas
Drought shuttered Texas' last sugar mill. Now, farmers are asking which crop is next?
England Cattle Company in Mercedes, Texas is facing a challenging situation. A 40-acre field that was once flourishing with sugar cane plants, cotton and corn is now dry and desperate for water. Farmer and owner of England Cattle Company, Michael England, joins FOX Weather.
MERCEDES, Texas – The last sugar mill in Texas shut its doors last month, citing a lack of water. Farmers were left to plow under the crop and wonder what drought would claim next.
That forced farmer and cattleman Michael England to destroy his 500 acres of sugarcane. The fertile fields remain empty, though, due to the lack of water. He only planted a fraction of other crops like cotton, sorghum (cereal grain) and corn on his remaining 2,500 acres.
“As all irrigated farmers, what we really need – the water – is in our dams… we just had no inflows,” said England, owner of England Farms and England Cattle Company. “We’ve only got just a few of our acres planted this year, and it’s just a big gamble that we’ve taken of even planting those.”
The 500 acres where England ripped out sugarcane remain barren because he has no water to plant new crops with.
(England Farms and Cattle / FOX Weather)
Drought causing crop failure
His row crops are 100% flood-irrigated. The water comes from the Rio Grande, about 10 miles from the farm. But with no upstream rain, the Rio Grande Basin dropped to record low levels recently, according to the National Weather Service and local media.
“Our water has been cut back over the last three years, but this is the worst I’ve ever seen where we’ve basically had zero water to work with,” England said.
“Our weather patterns have been changing over a number of years; (drought) in 2002, 2008, again in 2011, which, by the way, 2011 trumped the 1955 drought as far as statistics are concerned,” he added. “But then here we are back in a severe drought again. You’re (year) number three into it.”
EXTREME HEAT THREATENS CROP PRODUCTION IN TEXAS
The corn crop “is in really bad shape” according to England.
(England Farms and Cattle / FOX Weather)
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has extended a disaster proclamation for much of south Texas, “certifying that exceptional drought conditions posed a threat of imminent disaster in several counties.” It was issued in July 2022 at the start of the most recent drought.
Lack of water from Water Treaty with Mexico
Another source of water is Mexico through a 1944 water treaty.
“Our main water source is the Rio Grande River, which is also an international boundary with Mexico,” England said. “It’s water that is shared by Mexico via the 1944 treaty that was there. And that water is pumped out of the river that goes to various water districts, spread out across the valley. And then we receive it through pipelines and canals. But as of right now, all of that water has been taken away from us and only for municipal use.”
Complete lack of irrigation water for crop production in the Lower Rio Grande Valley would cost $495.8 million in direct revenue loss, Texas A&M University has calculated.
TEXAS DROUGHT, DRY HEAT LOWERING COTTON QUALITY
File: The Rio Grande River dividing Reynosa, Mexico (L) with Hidalgo, Texas in the United States (R).
(Robert Daemmrich Photography Inc/Corbis / Getty Images)
In exchange for U.S. water deliveries from the Colorado River, Mexico agreed to deliver water to Texas from several tributaries feeding the Rio Grande, according to the treaty. Every five years, Mexico must release 1.1 million acre-feet of water, which averages out to 350,000 acre-feet a year.
The Texas Farm Bureau pointed out that the country is behind over 736,000 acre-feet of water since the new cycle started in October 2020. That would mean delivering the equivalent of three-and-a-half years of water in the next year and a half.
The owners of the last sugar mill in Texas, along with other farmers, blame politics.
“Agriculture in the Rio Grande Valley depends on adequate and reliable irrigation water deliveries,” the mill said in a press release when it closed. “For over 30 years, farmers in South Texas have been battling with Mexico’s failure to comply with the provisions of the 1944 Water Treaty between the U.S. and Mexico that governs water sharing between the two nations on the Colorado River and the Lower Rio Grande.”
Dried out crops.
(England Farms and Cattle / FOX Weather)
Mexico cites its own water problems due to drought.
“Right now, we do have a delay in water deliveries, that’s the reality this current cycle, but our intention is to mitigate that deficit as much as possible,” Manuel Morales, secretary of the Mexican Section for the International Boundary and Water Commission Between Mexico and the United States told the Texas Tribune. “We want to continue complying with the treaty.”
Out of his 2,500 acres, England only planted 500 acres of cotton and 120 acres of sorghum grain. The cotton is “still holding on” but stunted because of the extreme drought. His grain crop is in “bad shape,” with shallow roots, “the crop is burning up,” he said.
HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER
The grain crop is in “bad shape,” according to England.
(England Farms and Cattle / FOX Weather)
“I just told myself, doesn’t make grain, I’ll make hay out of it for our cattle operation,” England said. “But, all the rest of the land is just sitting there idle.”
Texas is the top exporter of cotton in the country. In 2020, the state exported $1.7 billion. The Lone Star State exported $5.8 billion in agriculture in 2020, the sixth highest in the U.S., according to the state comptroller.
SAN ANTONIO – Texas voters will settle unfinished business from the March Primary on May 26, when they decide either who will be on the ballot for the November general election or who will take office next year.
Those contests in which no candidate received 50% plus one of the vote will be on the Tuesday, May 26 runoff election ballot.
The marquee matchup on that ballot is the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate between incumbent John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Cornyn received 42% of the vote to Paxton’s 41%. The two were the top vote-getters in a field of nine candidates seeking the seat on the November ballot.
Cornyn and Paxton were both hoping to get the endorsement of President Donald Trump, but that didn’t happen before the March vote and hasn’t happened since.
One day after the primary, the president said that he would endorse one of them but expected the other to drop out of the race. Neither candidate was inclined to do that. There still hasn’t been an endorsement.
Whoever wins will face Democratic nominee James Talarico, an Austin-area state representative and former San Antonio teacher who won his primary bid against U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett.
Another seat both parties have their eyes on in the newly-drawn Congressional District 35. Republicans and Democrats both want this seat formerly held by Greg Casar, who was drawn out of the district in last year’s redistricting. Casar will seek re-election in District 37.
Both the red and blue parties have runoff contests for voters to settle. On the Republican side, Carlos De La Cruz and John Lujan are the two candidates who came out with the most votes from a field of 11 candidates. Lujan, who had 33% of the vote, is giving up his seat in the Texas House to run for the job in Washington. De La Cruz, an Air Force Veteran and brother to U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz (District 15), received 27% of the vote. Trump endorsed De La Cruz early in the campaign.
On the Democratic side, the race was close between Maureen Galindo with 29% of the vote and Johnny Garcia (27%). The pair outlasted two other candidates to qualify for the runoff. Garcia is a now-former spokesperson with the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office. Galindo is a housing advocate who also works as a marriage and family therapist.
In Bexar County, the race for the Democratic spot on the ballot for District Attorney is down from eight to two: Luz Elena Chapa and Jane Davis. Chapa, a former appellate judge, received 27% of the vote. Davis, the chief of the juvenile section of the Bexar County DA’s Office, earned 18%.
The winner of this runoff will face Republican Ashley Foster in November, along with any independent candidate who makes it onto the ballot. The winner of that contest will take over from outgoing District Attorney Joe Gonzales, who is not seeking re-election after two tumultuous terms in office. Gonzales has endorsed Jane Davis as his successor.
Voters, depending on their party and address, will also be deciding the lieutenant governor, attorney general, state representative, state senator, county clerk and district clerk races.
The Bexar County Democratic sample ballot can be seen below:
The Bexar County Republican sample ballot can be seen below:
Early voting begins on Monday, May 18, and runs through Friday, May 22.
Election day is Tuesday, May 26.
Read also:
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The pitching woes continued for Texas A&M in its 18-11 series-opening loss to Mississippi State at Blue Bell Park on Thursday night.
Typically, scoring 11 runs in an SEC contest equates to a win, but not for the Aggies. Jason Kelly’s pitching staff gave up the most runs in a single inning since Texas A&M joined the conference in 2012. To make matters worse, the loss was tied for the most runs allowed this season, which came in an 18-5 run-rule loss to Auburn on May 2.
Needless to say, the bullpen has much work to do moving forward. With postseason play right around the corner, it is make-or-break for the pitchers on the roster to step up and provide consistency on the mound for the Aggies. If Texas A&M drops the series to the Bulldogs on Friday, it will be the end of the team’s hopes of being a national seed.
The Aggies will aim to avoid dropping their third straight SEC series, as they face Mississippi State in Game 2 at Blue Bell Park on Friday. First pitch against the Bulldogs is scheduled for 4 p.m. CT and will be broadcast live on SEC Network+.
Here are some of the best social media reactions from Texas A&M’s loss to Mississippi State in Game 1:
Final score from Blue Bell Park
18 runs… yes, you read that correctly
Statistics from the series-opening loss
Mississippi State takes down No. 10 in Game 1
Texas A&M drops in the league standings
That one stings a little
Poor night for A&M on the mound
Kellner’s mask was a sight to see
A closer look at Kellner’s mask guarding his eye
Grahovac’s lead-off solo home run
Hacopian’s solo home run in the first
RPI update
Weston Moss slated to start in Game 2
The formula for success wasn’t there for the Aggies in the series opener
Frustrating night on the bump for Texas A&M
The Aggies must find an answer to the lack of consistent performances on the mound
Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Dylan on X: @dylanmflippo.
Texas A&M football and basketball may be in the quiet stretch of their calendars, but the offseason doesn’t mean the work slows down. This is the time for coaches to hit the road, meet with Aggie clubs, and lay out the vision for the months ahead. One of the first stops each summer is the Dallas Aggies Coaches Night.
Hosted annually by the Dallas A&M Club, the event brings together several Texas A&M head coaches. This year, first‑year basketball coach Bucky McMillan joined football coach Mike Elko. Before the program began, both coaches met with the media and offered updates on their teams. And while football naturally draws the biggest spotlight, McMillan delivered plenty of insight into his first year in Aggieland and the foundation he’s building.
Below are some of the most notable quotes from Coach Bucky’s appearance at Coaches Night.
Texas A&M head basketball coach Bucky McMillan speaks on attending his first Dallas A&M Club event
“We didn’t have a roster. We didn’t have any coaches… It was wild, but since then I have gotten to meet so many great people and so many I have made friends with.”
Coach Bucky McMillan on the support they team received
“We have great support, and you did it with a coach you didn’t know very well. We broke a lot of records last year… We broke 15 A&M records. We are going to break all those again next year. I was proud of our defense, as small as we were.”
Coach Bucky McMillan discusses what being in Aggieland has meant to him
“Aggies love Aggies and A&M. I am from SEC country in the middle of Alabama. I tell my friends, the honor and tradition of being an Aggie is something I don’t take lightly. The honor of the people, it’s truly awesome. It makes me proud to wear this on my shirt.”
Coach Bucky McMillan on Mike Elko
“The football coach has to deal with a lot more things than I do… We lose a game, and most of y’all know about it, but everybody knows if he loses a game.” “The one thing I know is there could not better coach for Texas A&M than Mike Elko.”
Coach Bucky McMillan on the 2026-27 basketball season
“We are going to take that next step. We were a game away from the Sweet 16 this year, and we are going to be in that second weekend next year, trying to get the Final Four.”
Here’s a look at the impact the Dallas A&M Club has had since its founding.
Established in 1902, the Dallas A&M Club has awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships to Dallas-area students attending Texas A&M – with 29 Aggie fish and sophomores currently benefiting from our $6,000 scholarship awards.
As the chartered A&M Club for all of Dallas County, the DAMC has also generously given back to The Association of Former Students by contributing to the following: Aggie Park, Endowed Aggie Ring Scholarship (4), Endowed Diamond Century Club, Endowed Scholarship Fund, Corregidor Muster Memorial Fund, Building Enhancement Campaign, and The Association’s Annual Fund.
Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on X: @whosnextsports1.
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