The Latest: August - 2026
Summer Heat
Drought in the Plains withered the U.S. wheat crop to its smallest harvest since 1970. The drought has also reduced forage supplies and raised hay prices throughout the West. Similarly scorching weather reduced Europe’s grain harvest by 8% compared to last year’s bumper harvest. Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine continue to bomb one another’s ports and cargo ships, throttling grain exports from the breadbasket on the Black Sea. Smaller, less accessible global wheat supplies suggest that U.S. corn exports could speed up from an already breakneck pace.
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The long-awaited rains have disappointed so far. A weekend drizzle and sporadic showers over the past few days have not added up to much, and soils are parched in the Corn Belt. USDA estimates that 57% of U.S. corn production is currently struggling through drought.
View reportThe Midwest is awash in milk, and many dairy producers have been forced to dump milk that could not find a home. Cheesemakers say they are taking all they can, but the spot milk market is still “sloppy,” with more loads trading at steeper discounts.
View reportThere is simply too much cheese. USDA’s Dairy Market News reports that cheese production schedules are “steady to stronger” and, for some cheesemakers, “limited warehouse space is becoming a concern.” Meanwhile, there is plenty of milk, especially now that bottlers are slowing down intakes for summer break.
View reportCME spot whey powder touched a record low on Monday, trading below 26ȼ for the first time in its five-year tenure at the spot market. But it perked up from there, finishing today at 27.5ȼ. That’s still cheap, but it’s a penny higher than last Friday.
View reportSpot whey also dipped below 30ȼ in 2020, when the pandemic closed nearly every gym in the nation and demand for protein drinks plummeted. Today, the cause is much less dramatic. Processors are simply making more whey powder than the market needs.
View reportThe bears prowled LaSalle Street this week, and the bulls were nowhere to be found. Spot dairy product values slumped, and milk futures followed them lower. The cheese market led the way downward.
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