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| -Signs, Portents, and the Weather- | ||
| Drought-ravaged corn is starving the cattle industry and hiking up grocery bills | ||
| 2022-10-11 | ||
| [FoxWeather] One Great Plains farmer says beef prices would need to go up by 30% just for his ranch to break even. Drought is taking its toll on corn crops across the Great Plans and threatening to take cattle ranches down too. For more than two years, at least 40% of the U.S. has endured a moderate drought, according to the National Drought Mitigation Center. Now the prolonged rain shortage is causing the dominoes to fall across the area. Corn makes up about 95% of the primary feed grain for cattle in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Hogs and poultry also eat corn. CORN PRODUCTION AND QUALITY DOWN The USDA reports that corn production is 172.5 bushels per acre, down 8% from last year. The agency even downgraded its own estimate from last month by 2.9 bushels per acre as drought conditions persist. Making matters worse, only 54% of the year’s corn crop is reported in good to excellent condition. More farmers find themselves victims of drought. In recent years higher corn prices due to strong domestic demand for livestock feed and ethanol prompted many farmers to shift from other crops to corn, according to the USDA. But, drought conditions have caused a pullback. Just in this past year of drought, the USDA data shows areas planted in corn dropped 5% to 80.8 million acres – that is down 1 % from last month and down 5% from what was harvested last year. That further drops the corn supply. BEEF PRICES ALREADY UP SINCE 2021 Beef and veal prices are already up 2.5% since last August per the USDA. The agency forecasts a further increase of 5.5% to 6.5% through the end of the year. While shoppers have noticed the increase in prices, a bigger hike could be on the horizon. Farm-level cattle prices are up 17.6% from last year reports the USDA. Unfortunately for Felt Farms, the price is well below the 30% Felt is hoping for. Western ranches have already started culling their herds on cattle ranches and dairy farms due to drought.
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| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #3 Deer corn here now $14 for a sack. Something like 3-4 times what it was last time I bought it. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2022-10-11 16:00 |
| #2 Oh, that and V.V. Putin...the Jen Psaki-named "Putin Tax". That's another thing the Fed can't fix in its fight with inflation (and unemployment), Mother Nature. Imagine if we get some huge volcanic eruption and have little sunlight for a year. The weather is bad enough. Didn't some say years ago the next war would be fought over water? |
| Posted by: DooDahMan 2022-10-11 07:59 |
| #1 So inflation is caused by drought, not excess government spending. Got it! |
| Posted by: Bobby 2022-10-11 07:26 |