The following article is from Fox News:
By Judson Berger
The historic flooding in the South is poised to wreak havoc on the economy at multiple levels, likely putting local farmhands out of work while contributing to the nationwide rise in food prices.
As the Mississippi River crests and the flooding spreads to Mississippi and Louisiana, the vital grain crops in the region are in peril. In some places, the floodwaters are swamping or bearing down on wheat that is almost ready for harvest and corn that has broken through the ground, as well as plantings of rice, soybeans and cotton.
While people wait to return to their homes, they face the prospect of an economic calamity in the near-term. The impact will ultimately depend on how far and deep the flooding spreads, but state farming communities already are warning that it will take a big toll.
The Arkansas Farm Bureau on Tuesday estimated the flooding had submerged 1 million acres of state cropland, costing more than $500 million. The bureau suggested the hit to the state economy would be greater, predicting farmers wouldn’t be able to start recovering at least until the beginning of June. Arkansas, the largest rice producer in the country, probably lost 300,000 acres of rice in the floods, according to the organization.
Andy Prosser, spokesman with the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, told FoxNews.com the flooding will have a “tremendous effect” on local farmers and economies. Farmers in his state were preparing to harvest winter wheat, and most had already planted their corn, he said.
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Source: Fox News
Posted by Haylie Shipp
