'Shocking' corn prices: the other rising gold market

While gold bullion reaches record prices, golden corn demands its share of attention. Food prices have skyrocketed worldwide, and will soon hit consumers at grocery stores and restaurants.

A combine thrashes its way across Mike Schachtrup's cornfield near Peoria, Ill., on Monday, Oct. 11., near Peoria, Ill. Decreased corn yields have driven up corn prices, which will in turn drive up prices of chicken, pork, beef, and everything else that eats corn.

James Brosher / Peoria Journal Star / AP

October 13, 2010

Keep obsessing over gold, but the real explosion is happening in the agricultural commodity complex. Food prices around the world are exploding. Farmer Brown has been discussing the Agflation theme here since the summer. It's happening...

Where Did The Corn Go? (Daily Markets):

“Shocking!” That is the term used by some grain traders just after the release of the USDA’s yield estimate for this year’s U.S. Corn crop. The USDA projected 155.8 bushels per acre yield, which is well below the 162.5 bushels per acre projected in the September crop report.

Meat Market Corn Crunch Means Costliest Beef in Quarter Century (Bloomberg):

Meat prices are poised to extend a 14 percent rally this year that drove U.S. retail costs to the highest levels since the 1980s as surging corn futures prevent livestock producers from expanding their herds.

Are you prepared for higher food prices? (Examiner):

As the world markets opened at 8:00pm est, a shocking thing happened to food commodities. As a whole, futures contracts jumped nearly 9% in an instant on the world markets.

9%!

This is not simply an anomaly or speculation, this is showing that food producers all around the world are scared and are buying up every grain and kernel they can in the belief that prices and supply are soon to be beyond the ability to purchase.

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Don't sleep on this stuff.

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