Climate Matters: Prolonged drought putting a strain on farmers, consumers - ABC17News.com

Climate Matters: Prolonged drought putting a strain on farmers, consumers - ABC17NEWS

Climate Matters: Prolonged drought putting a strain on farmers, consumers

Missouri's drought is the worst in decades. Just ask a farmer.

"In my tenure back here on the farm since the late '90s, I've never experienced this stretch of a drought," said Moniteau County farmer Andy Clay.

As of this week, 99% of Missouri is still experiencing either abnormally dry or moderate drought conditions, and we have not been completely drought-free since June 2022.

The 1-in-20-year drought is hitting farmers hard, with many comparing it to 2012. That year, we had 10 inches less rainfall than normal in Columbia, while 2022 and 2023 had a bit more.

The biggest impact has been to pastures and cattle inventory, as hay feed has dropped dramatically with the dry weather.

Clay's family has been farming row crops and raising livestock in Moniteau County near the Missouri River for 200 years.

"The sale barns have been packed for really the past six months," Clay said. "A lot of our local sale barns have been seeing record numbers for the time of year, and it's exactly what you alluded to, it's because of the drought, people are running out of forage. Buying hay is very expensive, again, supply and demand. So a lot of people are selling their calf crop early or some people are having to disperse some of their cows."

Hay numbers have dropped significantly since 2019, with an almost one-ton per acre drop in five years. That has put a strain on cattle inventory, prices, and beef production. The USDA reports that 2024 has produced the smallest cattle inventory since 1961. The number of beef cows went down 2% since last year, and beef production is down 5% since 2022.

There's a correlation between dry years and cattle prices. Scott Brown, a professor of applied social science at the University of Missouri's College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources is forecasting the highest cattle prices in 20 years by the end of this year.

At the start of this year, the MOBUCKS program made $120 million available for small business owners, including farmers. Applications closed within six hours of opening due to overwhelming demand. Missouri farmers received another $200 million through the USDA livestock forage program in 2023.

Gov. Mike Parson said the state is watching to see if drought stretches into the upcoming growing season.

"I don't think there's any question that we're concerned about that," Parson said. "That's why we put the resiliency fund in there, I think it was about $3.5 million we put in there to try to help farmers. And that may just be ways to help with the water situation, whether its reservoirs, whether it's ponds, some way that if we get into that emergency situation that we've got some funds available to help."

Taxpayers often foot the bill for crop losses from drought. Excessive heat and drought are two of the biggest categories of federal crop insurance payouts for the state, according to the University of Missouri Extension.

The payouts reached $225 million in 2021.

Check back later and watch ABC 17 News at 10 p.m. for Jessica Hafner's special report on Missouri's drought.