Corn Harvest Comes Early for Midwest Farmers
August 27, 2012
The worst drought conditions in a generation are sending some U.S. farmers into their fields early to harvest corn. In the Midwest state of Illinois the poor condition of the corn is cutting into farmers' profits and is driving global prices higher.
The only thing farmer Bruce Nation sees in his cornfields outside Taylorville, Illinois, is heartache.
“This stuff is depressing here. This is hard to look at for me,” he said.
Most of the ears of corn that managed to grow in his fields are much smaller than normal because of the drought. Smaller corn means less to sell, which cuts into Nation’s bottom line.
“Probably, maybe 30 kernels on that whole thing. This is what we are up against,” he said.
Nation was also up against the risk that comes with planting and growing when the cost for seed and fertilizer are at all time highs.
“You are at the mercy of Mother Nature. Some people ask me why I do not gamble. Why, I gamble every day," he said. "That is just the way it is when you farm.”
As he takes to the fields to harvest - this year about a month ahead of schedule because of the drought - Nation is watching that gamble in real time. Thanks to an Internet connection in his tractor, he keeps a close watch on the rapidly-changing price for his corn and soybeans.
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