USDA: Consumers to pay for rising crop prices
By PHILIP BRASHER • Register Washington Bureau • February 21, 2008
Washington, D.C. — The outlook for Iowa's corn and soybean farmers just keeps getting better, but that's coming at a cost to consumers.
The U.S. Agriculture Department estimated today that growers will get a record $4.60 a bushel for this year's corn crop. That's up 60 cents a bushel from the value of the 2007 harvest.
This year's soybean harvest is expected to sell for a record $11.50 a bushel, up $1.10 from the value of the 2007 crop, even though farmers are expected to plant more soybeans this year than last.
"The outlook for agriculture has rarely, if ever, been more favorable," Joe Glauber, USDA's chief economist, said at the department's annual agricultural outlook conference.
The increase in commodity prices, which is due in part to the increased use of corn for fuel ethanol, means that consumers are paying more for food.
Food prices rose 4 percent last year and will rise another 3 to 4 percent this year, said Glauber. Food prices will continue rising faster than the overall inflation rate through 2010, he said.
Smithfield Foods, the world's largest pork producer and processor, has been forced to cut hog production because of the increase in feed costs, said Larry Pope, the company's chief executive.
"There's going to be real food inflation in this country. It has to come," he told the conference.
Agricultural exports also are booming as a result of the weak dollar, which makes U.S. products cheaper for overseas buyers. USDA projects farm exports will hit a record $101 billion, a $19 billion increase over last year. Sales of bulk grains, oilseeds and cotton will account for much of the increase.
By PHILIP BRASHER • Register Washington Bureau • February 21, 2008
Washington, D.C. — The outlook for Iowa's corn and soybean farmers just keeps getting better, but that's coming at a cost to consumers.
The U.S. Agriculture Department estimated today that growers will get a record $4.60 a bushel for this year's corn crop. That's up 60 cents a bushel from the value of the 2007 harvest.
This year's soybean harvest is expected to sell for a record $11.50 a bushel, up $1.10 from the value of the 2007 crop, even though farmers are expected to plant more soybeans this year than last.
"The outlook for agriculture has rarely, if ever, been more favorable," Joe Glauber, USDA's chief economist, said at the department's annual agricultural outlook conference.
The increase in commodity prices, which is due in part to the increased use of corn for fuel ethanol, means that consumers are paying more for food.
Food prices rose 4 percent last year and will rise another 3 to 4 percent this year, said Glauber. Food prices will continue rising faster than the overall inflation rate through 2010, he said.
Smithfield Foods, the world's largest pork producer and processor, has been forced to cut hog production because of the increase in feed costs, said Larry Pope, the company's chief executive.
"There's going to be real food inflation in this country. It has to come," he told the conference.
Agricultural exports also are booming as a result of the weak dollar, which makes U.S. products cheaper for overseas buyers. USDA projects farm exports will hit a record $101 billion, a $19 billion increase over last year. Sales of bulk grains, oilseeds and cotton will account for much of the increase.
"Ponder well on this point: the pleasant hours of our life are all connected, by a more or less tangible link, with some memory of the table."-Charles Pierre Monselet, French author(1825-1888)
