(Okay, sorry for the late post again ... VBS is really messing with my schedule)I guess the fields are a little more than slightly damp ... most are drenched and many are flooded! That has a few possible impacts to the row crop farmers. First of all there are still a small number of fields that haven't been planted yet and the mud/flooding isn't helping in that regard. Secondly, the water covered fields can/will hamper the yield. And finally, because of the extreme flooding many farmers will have to replant their fields. All of the water and flooding has led to corn above $7 a bushel (check out this article).
Of course $7 corn is a good thing for the farmers who have their crops in and aren't going to have to replant, but it doesn't help much for those that have to replant or the livestock farmers. And, because our farms have become so focused on a single type of farming (row crops or hogs or cattle ...) the pain is going to be felt by everyone ... including the consumers.
Because of higher grain prices we are also going to see a drop in the cattle/hog numbers which will in turn cause higher meat prices. So ... farmers will feel it ... packers will feel it ... and consumers will feel it. But, does it have to be like that? What if our cattle were grass-fed? Would that make a difference? What if our farms weren't so specialized? Would that make a difference.
Check out the article and then lay your thoughts on me!
