Cold weather is impacting ag commodities with the potential for this week’s temperatures to delay crop emergence in the Midwest.
Farmers raced ahead last week with nice warm weather. Now, nearly half of the expected U.S. crop is already in the ground, but this week, temperatures plunged toward the freezing point.
USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey talks about the implications for this year’s crop: “This will slow down the process of germination and early development until it warms back up, and then at that point, we should see a pretty rapid pace and hopefully even emergence in areas that have plenty of moisture.”
Rippey says that the chilly weather will also be a challenge for areas experiencing drought.
Brazil is under the stress of dry weather as well, and Joe Vaclavik, president of Standard Grain, says that it has helped increase demand prospects. In turn, that pushed markets higher.
“I think the weather issues in Brazill are a big-time deal. Just about every key corn-growing area in Brazil is in some stage of drought. They have been extraordinarily dry. There is absolutely nothing in the weather forecast in terms of rain,” Vaclavik states. “May is a big month for crop production in Brazil for the second corn crop. May would be the equivalent to their July, especially this year with everything late.”
Vaclavik says that this could mean more export business for U.S. corn, especially as many analysts reduce their expectations for Brazil’s corn crop by roughly 350 million bushels.
This tightens up the world’s supply and new estimates are expected from USDA next Wednesday.
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How Michigan’s ultra-early soybeans are fairing against frost