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US corn production hits 6-year low due to extreme drought
[Iran Press TV]  Corn and soybean production in the United States has slashed to a six-year low as the worst drought in more than 50 years is hitting the country hard.The US Department of Agriculture announced on Friday that the corn harvest is estimated to drop 13 percent to its lowest level in six years. The harvest will total 10.779 billion bushels compared with 12.358 billion in 2011 and about 2.2 billion bushels less than it was predicted last month. The department added that the all-time July's record temperatures across the country have left much of the crops damaged. About 55 percent of contiguous areas in the US, which is the world's biggest grain producer, are currently experiencing extreme drought. Corn prices have surged more than 60 percent over the past two months, reaching an all-time high of $8.49 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. The effect of such high prices is already being felt around the world, raising fears that the 2008 global food crisis could be repeated. The drought began in the eastern and southern Midwest but has now spread to the central and western areas of the region, including the two main states of the US Corn Belt, Iowa and Illinois. Posted by: Fred 2012-08-11 |
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