Concerns are growing as crop and livestock prices continue to drop and farmers continue to work through the COVID-19 outbreak. Iowa State University Extension Grain Markets Specialist Chad Hart believes these are tough times for farmers, but the market will make a comeback. Corn and soybean prices are down 10-15 percent, and livestock has seen a drop of 20-40 percent in the past month. He tells KCII News what two agricultural markets have been hit the worst during  the COVID-19 outbreak, “The markets I’m most worried about, at least for right now, would be corn on the crop side and pork when I’m looking at the livestock side. Those two industries have sort of taken the brunt of the impact here. Pork, especially with the shut down of the Tyson plant there in Columbus Junction. That has created some significant price ripples throughout the pork industry. For corn, it’s been the downfall of the ethanol plants and some of them stuttering down has driven corn prices lower. Depending upon how COVID-19 continues to possibly shut down more plants we could see further price declines.” The Tyson plant has been placed on idle after over 150 employees tested positive for COVID-19. 

While these dips in prices can create difficulties, Hart says crop and livestock farmers can bounce back from this. Livestock farmers are seeing lower costs for feed during these times, and crop farmers are just beginning to plant their crops and can allow some time to pass before making a sale, allowing the markets to improve. Hart also adds that this isn’t an issue of supply, but an issue of getting the supplies to the people. “We’re reworking the agricultural and food system here in the United States literally at the drop of a hat. All of us need to have some patience as far as working through this. Ok, we may go to that grocery store this week and not find exactly what we’re looking for, but recognize that supplies are still around, we’re getting better at figuring out how to rework the system and that it should mean that we’ll be able to get what we want, it just may not quite look the same as it used to. It may not be as convenient as it was once before, but we still do have very good supplies and delivery systems for our food markets.” Hart says some farmers may leave the industry because of the outbreak, but he believes the system as a whole should bounce back once the economy stabilizes.