US Faces Small Wheat Harvest as World Supplies Shrink
2022-06-10
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1American farmers are having crop production problems at a time when many countries are facing a food crisis.
2The United States is the world's fourth-largest wheat exporter.
3Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February stopped shipments of nearly a third of the world's wheat exports.
4Little has gone right for wheat supplies since then.
5Concerns about food supplies have increased because of worsening harvest possibilities in China and parts of Europe.
6In addition to that, major producer India has banned wheat exports because of a bad spring harvest there.
7The United Nations has warned the effect of the war on grains, oils, fuel and fertilizer could result in hunger for millions of people.
8The U.S. government has been calling on American farmers to plant more winter wheat this autumn.
9The government said it also would permit planting on some environmentally sensitive land beginning this autumn.
10But a drought and costly farm materials could limit production gains, grain experts say.
11There are two wheat crops in the United States: spring wheat and winter wheat.
12Both are in trouble.
13In the southern U.S. Plains, winter wheat farmers have received very little rain and are concerned about the size of their harvest.
14Kansas farmers may not harvest thousands of hectares of wheat in fields this year because of drought damage.
15Extremely wet spring weather in the northern U.S. Plains will also likely reduce crop production this year.
16In North Dakota, a big April storm left the state's large fields under more than 1 meter of snow in some areas, causing floods as the snow melted.
17The U.S. Department of Agriculture says farmers have only planted 49 percent of planned spring wheat as of May 22.
18North Dakota produces about half of the U.S. spring wheat.
19There, growers have planted just 27 percent of their crop, the second lowest amount in around 40 years.
20"Some farmers have not turned a wheel yet," said North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring.
21He added that if farmers are not able to plant a lot of crops quickly, the effects on the world market could be bad.
22A private group visiting wheat fields in Kansas in mid-May predicted more fields than normal might go unharvested because of drought damage.
23About six percent of the state's planted hectares would be abandoned, the latest USDA estimates suggest.
24But given the drought damage, Kansas State University wheat expert Romulo Lollato thinks the abandonment rate could be higher.
25In neighboring Colorado, abandonment could top 30 percent, Colorado Wheat Executive Director Brad Erker told tour participants.
26"Wheat yields are affected by weather in May, and we've had a really dry May," said Kansas farmer Vance Ehmke.
27U.S. wheat production has been decreasing because farmers have been planting more corn and soybeans.
28These crops can produce more profit.
29Seed science also has increased yields by 30 percent or more since 2000.
30Wheat's yield has increased only six percent.
31As the planting period in the northern Plains narrows, North Dakota farmers are considering other plans.
32These include changing to soybeans, which can be planted later in the spring.
33Another possibility is to fill out documents for crop insurance claims to limit farm losses.
34"It's pretty tempting to file those claims," North Dakota farmer Dwight Grotberg said.
35"Once you get into June, you might be lucky to get half a crop. And with costs as high as they are, that's hard to stomach."
36I'm John Russell.
1American farmers are having crop production problems at a time when many countries are facing a food crisis. 2The United States is the world's fourth-largest wheat exporter. 3Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February stopped shipments of nearly a third of the world's wheat exports. Little has gone right for wheat supplies since then. 4Concerns about food supplies have increased because of worsening harvest possibilities in China and parts of Europe. In addition to that, major producer India has banned wheat exports because of a bad spring harvest there. 5The United Nations has warned the effect of the war on grains, oils, fuel and fertilizer could result in hunger for millions of people. 6Drought in some areas; wet conditions in others 7The U.S. government has been calling on American farmers to plant more winter wheat this autumn. The government said it also would permit planting on some environmentally sensitive land beginning this autumn. But a drought and costly farm materials could limit production gains, grain experts say. 8There are two wheat crops in the United States: spring wheat and winter wheat. Both are in trouble. 9In the southern U.S. Plains, winter wheat farmers have received very little rain and are concerned about the size of their harvest. 10Kansas farmers may not harvest thousands of hectares of wheat in fields this year because of drought damage. 11Extremely wet spring weather in the northern U.S. Plains will also likely reduce crop production this year. 12In North Dakota, a big April storm left the state's large fields under more than 1 meter of snow in some areas, causing floods as the snow melted. 13The U.S. Department of Agriculture says farmers have only planted 49 percent of planned spring wheat as of May 22. 14North Dakota produces about half of the U.S. spring wheat. There, growers have planted just 27 percent of their crop, the second lowest amount in around 40 years. 15"Some farmers have not turned a wheel yet," said North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring. He added that if farmers are not able to plant a lot of crops quickly, the effects on the world market could be bad. 16Giving up on the harvest? 17A private group visiting wheat fields in Kansas in mid-May predicted more fields than normal might go unharvested because of drought damage. 18About six percent of the state's planted hectares would be abandoned, the latest USDA estimates suggest. But given the drought damage, Kansas State University wheat expert Romulo Lollato thinks the abandonment rate could be higher. 19In neighboring Colorado, abandonment could top 30 percent, Colorado Wheat Executive Director Brad Erker told tour participants. 20"Wheat yields are affected by weather in May, and we've had a really dry May," said Kansas farmer Vance Ehmke. 21Corn and soybeans 22U.S. wheat production has been decreasing because farmers have been planting more corn and soybeans. These crops can produce more profit. Seed science also has increased yields by 30 percent or more since 2000. Wheat's yield has increased only six percent. 23As the planting period in the northern Plains narrows, North Dakota farmers are considering other plans. These include changing to soybeans, which can be planted later in the spring. Another possibility is to fill out documents for crop insurance claims to limit farm losses. 24"It's pretty tempting to file those claims," North Dakota farmer Dwight Grotberg said. "Once you get into June, you might be lucky to get half a crop. And with costs as high as they are, that's hard to stomach." 25I'm John Russell. 26Karl Plume reported on this story for Reuters. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English. 27____________________________________________________________________ 28Words in This Story 29fertilizer - n. a substance (such as manure or a special chemical) that is added to soil to help the growth of plants 30drought - n. a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain 31abandon - v. to stop doing or having (something) : to give up (something) completely; to leave and never return to (someone who needs protection or help) 32yield - n. the amount of something that is produced by a plant, farm 33insurance -n. an agreement in which a person makes regular payments to a company (sometimes a government) and the company promises to pay money if the person experiences a business loss, such as the loss of crops 34tempting -adj. having a desire to do something 35hard to stomach - expression difficult to accept or do something