Severe Weather Trends Impacting Ag

This year has seen severe weather events with over 1,500 tornadoes causing significant wind damage and Hail. Such years often reset insurance policies, raising a question of whether this is the new normal. Senior Science fellow with Nutrient Ag Solutions. Eric Snodgrass.

“We look at data. That's the big thing. So for example, with respect to the severe weather, there was some great research published out of Northern Illinois University a couple years ago that was done by a man named Victor Gassini. And what he studied was, is there been any sort of a shift in Tornado Alley? Is it expanding, contracting? Is changing north south, and what we found is that throughout the Mississippi Valley over the last 40-plus years, there's just been an increase, especially along the mid-south of tornadic activity that also is a region we've seen increases in hail and wind damage, as well."

Beyond severe weather shifting droughts, floods have significantly impacted farming in the United States.”

Most of the West, especially the coastal regions, have like a Mediterranean climate, so there's six months of snow and rain and then six months of nothing. And if the reservoirs are full, I know we've had a lot of major wildfires in the West this year, but agriculturally, those reservoirs are what's key to the growing season. They've been full this past year because of such huge snowpack.

Once again.

Eric Snodgrass, Senior Science fellow with Nutrient ag solutions.