CHICAGO, Ill. (Reuters) – Heat and mould may reduce the quality of an already small soft red winter wheat crop in the eastern U.S. Midwest.Farmers planted record-low SRW wheat acres in several U.S. states, including Ohio, where constant rain allowed mould to thrive, and Illinois, where hot temperatures in recent weeks have stunted growth of the grain.Total winter wheat acres are the fewest since 1913, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.”There’s a great deal less wheat around … and yields will be down,” said Dennis Epping, extension crops educator at the University of Illinois.Scorching temperatures early this spring halted growth of part of Illinois’ wheat crop, he said, while some was killed during the winter after last year’s late corn harvest slowed crop rotations and prevented a timely wheat planting.Rainfall in northwestern Ohio was double normal rates during May and the first half of June, said Glen Arnold, extension educator at Ohio State University.Fusarium head blight, which is called head scab in the United States, has thrived in the wet conditions, and the SRW wheat crop could be plagued by vomitoxin. The plant toxin, which can sicken animals if ingested in large amounts, also hit last year’s corn crop.Some of the SRW wheat crop was planted in the same fields where corn with high levels of vomitoxin was harvested last year because farmers chose not to till the land to protect it from soil erosion.”It’s not unusual to get a small amount of head scab each year, but the levels this year are about 10 fold over what is normal for us, so we’re very concerned about it,” he said.It is not known how much of the wheat in Ohio will be affected, but Arnold said grain elevators and processors will likely test every SRW wheat load they receive for vomitoxin.”They will be selective with the grain they buy,” said Arnold.The USDA has reported that 66 percent of the U.S. winter wheat crop was rated good to excellent.
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