Record Corn Crop Shifts Global Food Prices

Aug 09, 2013

By Victor Santiago, Farms.com

The 2013 U.S. corn harvest is expected to be the biggest ever, with a jump of 30 percent from last year. 27 analyst studies compiled by Bloomberg estimate the crop will measure out to 356.5 million metric tons or 14.036 billion bushels. This is 86 million bushels above the government’s July forecast. With the U.S. being the largest corn supplier, global stockpiles are poised to reach 13 year records.

The U.S. is not alone in recording record corn crops; Brazil and the Ukraine are also forecasting record yields. The record supply of corn has created a bear market for the commodity, with large investment banks such as Goldman Sachs cutting their price forecasts. Diana Klemme, a VP at Grain Service Corn, states “it is possible to see sub $4 corn, a price last seen in 2010”. Futures have already hit a 34 month low, falling 34 percent to $4.62 on the Chicago Board of Trade this year alone.

Lower corn prices are already having an effect on meat processors, most notably Tyson Foods Inc, whose Q3 profit more than tripled. The downward pressure on feed prices will help stabilize meat prices that have been approaching near record levels. Weather, as well as the most acres planted since 1936 are seen as the key reasons behind the record level corn crop.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.