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October 1988, No. 14

Of the major crops, barley, oat and spring wheat production are expected to be down about 50% from last year. Fortunately, the decline in total wheat production may be held to 14% as the winter wheat crop virtually escaped this year's drought damage.

Last Updated: 10/28/1988

Drought

Gary L. Benjamin

Crop production estimates released on September 12, 1988 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture were not good news for consumers worried about the drought's effects on food prices. USDA projected 1988's overall crop production to be down 17% from last year; down 25% from the all-time highs, most recently reached in 1985; and comparable to the curtailed output of 1983 when drought and a large reduction in acreage pulled crop production to a 9-year low.

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