Kentucky Corn Harbinger for Rest of the Drought Areas?

If the results from recent rains in drought-stricken areas of Kentucky are an example of what to expect from other parts of the Midwest portion of the United States hit by drought, than the outlook for the highly anticipated yields is dismal at best.

Kentucky received above average rain last week, which according to farmers and University of Kentucky agricultural meteorologist Tom Priddy, won't be enough to salvage the corn crop in the state, which was rated at 75 percent poor or very poor as of Monday by the USDA.

So if up to five inches of rain falling on corn in some areas of Kentucky isn't enough, it doesn't give much hope to other regions of the country which are looking to rain to save their crops.

Of course it depends upon the quality of the crop in the particular regions of the Midwest rains could fall upon, but by any measure, no matter what happens going forward, a lot of the U.S. corn crop is lost for the year.

Just recently the U.S. Agriculture Department declared 26 counties in Kentucky as natural disaster areas. The western portion of Kentucky, which is the prime corn farming region, was the hardest hit by the drought, and received only scattered rain during the week.

When a county is declared a natural disaster area, low interest lows are available to farmers eligible for them. Crop insurance will help the farmers hit by the drought, but it won't help in regard to higher food prices, which will without a doubt be passed on to consumers.

The question is generated by the rains in Kentucky of whether or not it's too late for corn that has already been under heavy stress. The answer appears to be yes, and the corn yields estimates in the U.S. undoubtedly will be downwardly revised again.