Last week’s cold temperatures may have killed as much as 15% of the Plains and Midwest’s winter wheat crops, that is according to the Commodity Weather Group.
Without a protective layer of snowfall in the regions, wheat crops were left vulnerable to winter kill. The frigid conditions stretched from Montana all the way to Texas, impacting roughly 65% of the country’s hard red winter wheat.
We likely will not know the extent of the damage until dormant crops resume growth this spring.
While many are ending January on a warmer note, the mild conditions are not expected to last.
USDA Meteorologist Brad Rippey says that more Arctic air is on the way.
“As we move into the late week and the weekend period we will see a little bit of a southward push of that Arctic cold front and we will unleash a new round of cold air, nothing like what we saw last week, but certainly colder air coming for the Plains, the Midwest as we move into the weekend and beyond,” Rippey explains.
He creds a weak La Niña weather pattern for the cooler-than-normal conditions, with cold air blowing in through the Arctic Sea from Siberia.
Jim Matheson, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, provides new updates on winter storm impacts and the outlook for rural power reliability.
January 30, 2026 02:59 PM
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Jessi Grote from the AgriSafe Network provides winter safety guidance for rural communities still recovering from the recent winter storm.
January 30, 2026 01:42 PM
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A rapidly intensifying winter storm is expected to develop into a bomb cyclone this weekend, affecting the Southeast, southern Virginia, and potentially parts of the mid‑Atlantic and New England.
January 30, 2026 10:52 AM
Brent Graves of StockShowAuctions.com takes us to Grayson County to see the damage from a historic winter ice storm and what it will take to rebuild.
January 30, 2026 09:32 AM
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Mike Steenhoek of the Soy Transportation Coalition shares how extreme winter weather is affecting the ag transportation network and what producers should keep in mind as conditions slowly improve.
January 28, 2026 01:36 PM
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Matt Brockman, Communications Director for the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo, joined us with a look at how the legendary event is moving forward—weather and all.
January 28, 2026 12:27 PM
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