Storm paralyzes grain, livestock movement

U.S. grain and livestock movement ground to a halt on Wednesday as one of the biggest storms to hit the U.S. heartland in a decade dumped up to 20 inches of snow in some spots and forced grain elevators and processors to close. The closures stretched from far western Iowa to Ohio, snarling grain deliveries in the biggest corn- and soybean region of the United States, the world's top producer of corn and soybeans.

"The storm is winding down but it is by far having a huge impact on transportation," said Mike Palmerino, a forecaster with Telvent DTN weather service.Those grain elevators that were open had a skeleton crew."I'm the only one here working from the office," said a dealer at an Iowa elevator along the Mississippi River. "Yeah, they can deliver if they can make it in, but why would they want to?"

The storm stretched across 30 states, leaving many Midwest roads snow covered or impassable, and Interstate 80 was closed from Morris to Princeton, Illinois. Many grain merchandisers are unable to load barges amid the heavy snow and icing on rivers. Both corn and soybean futures hit fresh 2-1/2 year highs overnight before easing as traders took profits. Wheat futures also hit highs in many contract months at exchanges in Chicago, Kansas City and Minneapolis, triggering farmer sales. Read more...

This blog is written by Martin Little The Global Miller, published and supported by the GFMT Magazine from Perendale Publishers.