Grain Futures: As of 4:00 p.m. on Dec. 30, corn, soybean, and wheat futures were lower compared to the week before.
Corn for March 2016 was $3.59/bushel, down from $3.7425/bushel in the previous report. The May 2016 price for corn slipped to $3.6525/bushel from the $3.8025/bushel level reported on Dec. 17, while trading of December 2016 corn contracts checked in at $3.8325/bushel, down from $3.965/bushel at last report.
The January 2016 soybean price was $8.755/bushel, down from $8.77/bushel at last report. Soybeans for March 2016 had fallen to $8.7025/bushel from the previously reported $8.7775/bushel, while soybeans for November 2016 were posted at $8.8825/bushel, down from $8.94/bushel at last report.
Wheat for March 2015 was $4.655/bushel, down from the prior period’s $4.805/bushel. July 2016 wheat slipped to $4.86/bushel from $5.0175/bushel at last report, and September 2016 wheat contracts traded at $5.0025/bushel, down from $5.1575/bushel in the previous report.
Eastern Cornbelt: Extensive flooding was reported on parts of the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers last week due to heavy rain from Winter Storm Goliath.
The Mississippi River at Chester, Ill., was expected to crest at 49.7 feet on Jan. 1, while river levels at Thebes, Ill, were forecast to reach a record 47.5 feet on Jan. 1, more than 18 inches above the previous record set in 1995. Local reports said up to 2,500 hogs drowned in an Illinois barn last week after flood waters quickly spread from a nearby creek.
Freezing rain, flooding, and high winds also hit northern Indiana on Dec. 27. The storm hammered southeastern Ohio as well, with flood warnings in effect on Dec. 28-29 for portions of the Great Miami River, a tributary of the Ohio River.
Western Cornbelt: Powerful winter storms brought snow to Iowa and torrential rains to Missouri in late December. Central Iowa was hit with 3-5 inches of snow on Dec. 27, and more snow was expected across the state again at midweek. All of Iowa’s 99 counties were under National Weather Service storm advisories on Dec. 28.
Missouri received the brunt of the region’s storm activity in late December, with three-day rainfall totals ranging from 3-12 inches in an areas stretching from central Missouri down to northeastern Oklahoma. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency on Dec. 27 due to extensive flooding along portions of the Mississippi River, and on Dec. 28 he activated the National Guard to assist first responders with evacuations.
The river began to overtop levees just north of West Alton, Mo., late on Dec. 28, prompting a flash flood warning from the National Weather Service. The Mississippi was expected to reach nearly 15 feet above flood stage on Dec. 31 at St. Louis, which would be the second-worst flood on record, behind only the devastating 1993 flood.
Although Nebraska was also bracing for a big winter wallop early in the week, the storm largely bypassed the state and focused its fury on Iowa and Missouri. Only two inches of snow fell on Dec. 27 in central and eastern areas of Nebraska, with even less in the western counties.
California: Cold weather gripped much of California during the final days of 2015. Temperatures plunged to freezing or near-freezing in many parts of Southern California and the Central Valley on Dec. 28, prompting frost advisories and freeze warnings for citrus growing areas. News reports said some growers ran wind machines and flooded orchards as a precaution.
December storms brought needed snowfall to the Sierra Nevada, with snowpack levels tracking ahead of average for this time of year. In the northern Sierra, the snowpack was reported at 116 percent of average last week, with the central Sierra at 121 percent of average and t