Late-season snows sent corn prices higher on Monday as grain traders bid up prices in the wake of a government report showing that farmers haven't been able to get into their fields to plant.
The slow start to what could be one of the most profitable years ever for crop farmers because of corn prices saw just 10 percent of the crop in the ground as of Sunday, far less than the 35 percent average from the last five years, the USDA report said. Minnesota farmers planted 1 percent of the crop by Sunday, but typically have 27 percent planted by now.
"All bets are off," said Brian Buhr, an agricultural economist at the University of Minnesota.
Corn futures prices shot up on the news: Corn for May delivery rose 22.75 cents to $6 a bushel in trading Monday at the Chicago Board of Trade.
That's bad news for consumers already reeling from food prices that are up 5 percent in the past year, and worse news for hog and poultry farmers who are struggling as feed costs eat away profits.
Corn farmers nationally were expected to plant some 86 million acres this year, down 8 percent from a year ago, but still the second-largest crop by acres planted in nearly six decades. Several factors explain the drop from last year, including high prices for other crops, normal crop rotations and the high cost of fertilizer, which corn uses more of per acre than other commodity crops.
Some of the largest corn-growing states are having the toughest time getting crops in, with Iowa showing just 3 percent of corn planted versus its typical 33 percent, Illinois at 6 percent compared with 55 percent in a normal year and Indiana, at 11 percent versus 30 percent.
The snows continued through last weekend, with an Alexandria area farmer reporting Monday that his fields were hit with a foot of snow on Saturday. More snow is possible this weekend.
The state's oat farmers typically have 49 percent of their crop planted by April 27, but as of Sunday just 9 percent of the crop is in the ground, according to the report.
The weather's affecting other crops as well: The Red River Valley this time of year typically sees an army of sugarbeet farmers working their fields with as much as 50 percent to 75 percent of their crop planted. A mere 5 percent of the crop has been put in the ground so far, according to Jeff Schweitzer, spokesman for American Crystal Sugar Company in Moorhead, Minn.
"It's an uphill battle for us at this point to get our acres in," he said Monday. The growers expect to plant 414,000 acres this year, but just 20,000 are done. Schweitzer said there's snow on the ground near his office in Moorhead. On Friday, the area was hit with 5 to 8 inches of snow.
"It was so depressing," said Schweitzer.
Matt McKinney • 612-673-7329
