How Flooding Affects Your Pocket!

Another gas, grocery shock: How flooding will cost you

by Emily Gersema - Jun. 18, 2008 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic

NOTE: Below is only an excerpt, but you can read the whole article by clicking the link above.

"Iowa is one of the top growing states for corn, harvesting about 2 billion bushels per year, according to the Iowa Corn Growers Association.

Illinois, another big corn state, also has suffered some flooding.

A tight supply of corn spells trouble for everyone from the farm to the table.

Reynolds said farmers nationwide will have to pay more for feed to raise their livestock, giving rise to higher meat and poultry prices.

Processed foods made from corn, soybeans or other Midwestern crops also will increase in price.

The hit will also be coming at the gas pumps.

Opponents of the federal assistance program for renewable fuels have been blaming ethanol plants for buying up most of the nation's corn harvest to make biofuels, driving up animal feed and food prices."
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I have been waiting for this news to surface soon. I have friends who told me how bad the flooding really was in Iowa, forcing some to leave their farms. The picture sort of says it all.

So, here we are...we were going to be hurting anyways with this years crop of corn, this year being the possible first time in history the US would have to import to keep up with demand. Now with the 2 largest producing States under water, what does the future hold?

At what point does corn prices per bushel exceed the threshold making Ethanol just as expensive, or dare I say it, more expensive than regular gasoline.

Makes me sort of wish that we kept our reserves that we sent over to help the victims of the flooding over in Asia that just stayed on the boats, waiting possibly rotting while their leaders decide whether or not they are going to allow outside aide.