Drought due to climate change drains once-mighty Mississippi so low that grain barges are running aground.

(Originally published Oct. 11 in “What in the World“) Retaliatory missile strikes by Russia against Ukrainian civilian targets helped push wheat prices to a three-month high. Wheat fields weren’t among the reported targets, but investors are concerned that Russian President Vladimir Putin may torpedo an agreement allowing Ukrainian wheat shipments from Black Sea ports.

While parts of Florida are still mopping up after Hurricane Ian, it’s drought wreaking havoc on U.S. grain harvests. What crops are being harvested may not make it to market as lower water levels cause barges to run aground on the mighty Mississippi. That’s helping push soybean prices higher, for example, as cargoes can’t make it to China. As much as 60% of U.S. grain exports are shipped out the Gulf Coast.

With no rain for the Midwest on the horizon for weeks, water levels in the lower Mississippi could soon fall to their lowest in 10 years. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is dredging the river to reduce a backlog of hundreds of barges along the river.

Skyrocketing prices for wheat are putting pressure on prices for rice as nations turn to it as an alternative food source. Rice prices have climbed more than 12% in the past year, reaching an 18-month high in September. Unusually heavy monsoon rains in India, meanwhile, have delayed the planting of rice, soy, and other food crops there. Meteorologists are forecasting rainfall this month 15% above normal, raising the prospect for further food-price inflation in a nation that has already restricted exports of rice.