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Liuzzas Farm: Five generations of Sicilian heritage in Louisiana
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INDEPENDENCE - October is Italian American Heritage Month, a time to honor Italian traditions and their impact across the country. In Independence, Louisiana, one family’s story shows how those roots continue to grow strong, five generations later.
At Liuzza’s Farm, tradition isn’t just preserved, it’s thriving. What started with Italian immigrants more than a century ago has blossomed into a legacy that continues to shape Louisiana agriculture today.
“The Liuzza name is, is, you know, pretty synonymous for produce in Louisiana,” Joey Liuzza, the current owner said.
Joey’s great-great-grandparents, Jake and Lena Liuzza, settled in Tangipahoa Parish in the early 1900s. Like many Italian immigrants, they were drawn to the area because the fertile fields reminded them of Sicily, and they knew how to work the land.
“They were able to come here, farm, because they understood the land, because of what they were, had been raised back in Sicily. So it did have a big impact,” Liuzza said.
The family began as sharecroppers, eventually buying the land they worked and turning hard work into ownership. Over time, Tangipahoa Parish became known for strawberries, and the Liuzzas were part of that history.
“It was a major hub for strawberries, with the railroad. So with that, a lot of the Sicilians actually worked loading the boxcars to send, you know, the strawberries up to Chicago,” Liuzza said.
While farming has evolved from small truck patches to agritourism, the Liuzzas say the family values haven’t changed.
“He started the farm into what we have today. He kind of set the groundwork for the commercial end of it,” Liuzza said.
Today, Liuzza’s Farm is a five-generation operation, still thriving on the same property where it all began.
“Knowing that I'm growing on the same land that our first generation farmed is a pretty big accomplishment,” Liuzza said.
You can find Liuzza’s produce at local farmers' markets, grocers across Southeast Louisiana, and of course at the Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival each spring.
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