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“If we have bad crops, it’s going to be a wild ride,” said the
Agriculture Department’s chief economist, Joseph Glauber. “There’s
just no cushion.”
“China also faces trouble: the agriculture ministry issued an urgent
notice to wheat and rice farmers in southern China on Sunday, telling
them to harvest as much of their crop as possible immediately in the
face of unseasonable torrential rains expected to rake the region for
the next 10 days.”
“”We can’t snap our fingers and make high yields,” said Emerson D.
Nafziger, a professor of agronomic extension at the University of
Illinois. “We still depend on the weather.”
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New York Times
June 10, 2008
Worries Mount as Farmers Push for Big Harvest
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/10/business/10planting.html?hp
By DAVID STREITFELD and KEITH BRADSHER
GRIFFIN, Ind. – In a year when global harvests need to be excellent
to ease the threat of pervasive food shortages, evidence is mounting
that they will be average at best. Some farmers are starting to fear
disaster.
American corn and soybean farmers are suffering from too much rain,
while Australian wheat farmers have been plagued by drought.
“The planting has gotten off to a poor start,” said Bill Nelson, a
Wachovia grains analyst. “The anxiety level is increasing.”