Updating the President on Food Prices

I'm Greg Martin with the Market Line Report for July 19, 2012.

Yesterday, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack briefed President Obama on the drought gripping the United States and its potential impact.
VILSACK: Everybody know there’s a drought and they know it’s severe and everybody knows they corn prices and bean prices have gone up and that impacts livestock producers in long term. What folks don’t know is it does take some time for those prices and that impact to be felt. Nor do most people realize how little farmers get out of that food dollar. So even though prices are increasing it may not translate into significantly higher food costs. Right now we estimate our food inflation rate at somewhere between 2.5 and 3.5 percent. If there were going to be higher food costs you would likely see them later in the year and in the first part of next year.
Chicago September Wheat ended Wednesday up 18 1/4 at 9.03 1/4 even.
September corn was up 15 1/2 at 7.95.
Portland prices for soft white wheat and club wheat were unchanged to up 5 at mostly 8.83.

Hard Red Winter Wheat with 11.5 pct protein prices were up 13 cents at mostly 9.52.

DNS wheat with 14 pct protein prices were steady to up 4 cents at mostly 10-80.

August live cattle ended up at 1.18.075

August Feeder cattle were up 3 at 137-20 even.

August class III milk was down 24 cents at 17-79.

I'm Greg Martin with the Market Line Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network. Now this.