Cattle Prices Shoot up as Rains Pour Down

According to usagnet, consumers throughout the world were warned to expect even sharper increases in global food prices after U.S. officials said that some of the country's best farmland was facing its worst flooding for 15 years.

The news agency says that agriculture officials and traders believe the damage could push up worldwide corn and soyabean prices, which have spiralled in recent days as floods have swamped crops in parts of Iowa, the U.S.'s biggest corn-producing state.

The warning comes at a time when high food prices are already sparking protests across the developing world. Corn futures in Chicago this week rose to record highs of more than $8 a bushel on fears that up to 5m acres of the crop could be lost, while soyabean prices hit a record of $15.93 a bushel.

Tom Jennings, acting director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture, said the price of corn and the price of beans could rise more. The increase in the cost of corn and soyabeans - the two main feed crops for farm animals such as cows and chickens - increased the price of live cattle yesterday for the second day in a row.

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