With October looking to bring in some really nice weather for a while, the 2024 harvest will now be at full speed. The Vermilion County Farm Bureau’s Tom Fricke says the off and on rains of the past week slowed down farmers by varying degrees; some for just a day, some for several days. Now, the focus turns to a harvest that’s predicted to be very strong, but a situation that should also result in continued low commodity prices due to supply outweighing demand.
Every farmer goes into the new growing season hoping for a bumper crop. But when they’re happening all over, as Fricke reminds us; a basic fact speaks loudly.
AUDIO: One thing that hasn’t changed is that we are still a supply and demand economy. That’s why we need to continue developing markets for our products; keep working with foreign countries so that we can export our products to the countries that need it for food, or energy, or livestock food.
And now, with a port workers strike on the east and Gulf coasts, getting Illinois corn and soybeans that need to be exported to those markets could be a major problem.
AUDIO: Especially here in Illinois, we are so situated for exports with the river system and the railroads; but once you get it to the coasts, wherever direction it’s headed, you then need to depend on those port workers to load the grain on to the ships to be able to export it to our customers. So if this turns into a long term situation, it definitely could have an impact on us.
Fricke says a port workers strike does not just cause export worries; but also import worries, such as for input items needed for farmers’ preparations for the next growing season.
