Wheat Prices Soaring

WAITSBURG - The wheat prices are soaring and local farmers are anticipat- ing harvest, getting ready to get the work done fast to take advantage of this historic high.

J.E. McCaw, the Waits- burg branch manager of Northwest Grain Growers, said from July 2 through July 18, farmers have seen the price of white wheat raise from $7.13 to $8.38 per bushel. This $1.25 increase over 15 days is good news to local wheat farmers, McCaw said. Harvest has already started in the western part of Walla Walla County.

"The crops are still looking pretty good around here," he said. "This may be the highest price at the start of harvest we have ever experienced."

The reason the price is going through the roof is because of weather-related prob- lems in the Midwest, Australia, China and Russia, said Heath Barnes, the grain mer- chandiser for the Columbia County Grain Growers in Dayton.

Barnes said there is a major drought in the corn belt, which has stalled production. Dry weather in Russia since last fall has reduced that country's production, he said. Australia is expe- riencing a drought as well. Essentially, Touchet Valley farmers are making a good profit because other farmers are experiencing droughts.

"This is causing world prices to escalate," Barnes said.

Prices are even better than last year, which was a great, profitable year for wheat farmers in the Touchet Val- ley. Barnes said the price per bushel is about $1.50 to $2 higher than in summer of 2011. Mc- Caw said last year at this time the wheat price was $6.55 per bushel, which he said is historically still a great price.

He said he doesn't remember prices booming like this since about 2008. However, not many farmers reaped the profit rewards at that time because the prices rose after the har- vest, he said.

"This has got to rank in the top 5 per- cent," McCaw said.

However, because the farmers are in what McCaw called a "weather market," prices can be very volatile - up one day and down an- other. He said if the corn belt receives some rain and the production picture becomes more positive, prices could go back down.

"Supplies are tight and the weather is having an impact," McCaw said. "(The prices are) anything but stable."

Barnes agreed that prices can change rapidly with the current weather patterns. But, he believes farmers in the Midwest will continue to see major shortfalls this summer.

"I don't think these prices are going away anytime soon," Barnes said. "The farmers are anxious to get harvest underway."

Farmers can sell bushels before harvest to take advan- tage of high prices, McCaw said. And right now, local farmers are watching the numbers closely and focus- ing on getting harvest done quickly.

Barnes said rust was an issue again this year. Rust builds on wheat in wet con- ditions and can stop the plant's photosynthesis pro- cess, the process than enables the plant to feed itself and grow.

But, after the large bout of rust last year, farmers were prepared this year and sprayed crops to prevent rust, he said.

"It's not something that I think is going to be hurting yield," Barnes said.

However, our recent rain and hail storms are a concern. The hail beats down hard on crops and there's nothing farmers can do to protect them or salvage the plants.

"It's just one of those things - there's not much you can do about it," he said.

McCaw said in the west- ern part of the county harvest will be about 10 days later than normal, has already begun in some areas. In Dayton and Waitsburg, farmers are still a week away or more because the recent humidity is keeping the crops from ripening, he said.

"Everybody will be going just as hard and fast as they can," McCaw said.