CHICAGO (Reuters) – Major U.S. grain companies have tightened curbs on genetically modified grains not yet approved by foreign markets, with some singling out one popular corn variety made by Syngenta, fearing any trace of the biotech grain in shipments could shut off export markets.

The action was taken just weeks before the U.S. corn harvest, when this variety of corn could enter market channels.

CHICAGO, Sept 1 (Reuters) – Major U.S. grain companies have
tightened curbs on genetically modified grains not yet approved
by foreign markets, with some singling out one popular corn
variety made by Syngenta (SYNN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), fearing any trace of the
biotech grain in shipments could shut off export markets.

The action was taken just weeks before the U.S. corn
harvest, when this variety of corn could enter market
channels.

DEFIANCE, Ohio (Reuters) – Except for the spiffy Hunter rain boots that can cost more than $100 a pair, the fund manager was one with the crowd — farmers and industry folk in a muddy corn field in the heart of U.S. grain country.

Far from their computers and other gadgets that are the trappings of Wall Street, those in the multi-billion-dollar hedge fund industry are making their way to the corn fields in the midwestern United States in increasing numbers.

CHICAGO, Aug 2 (Reuters) – U.S. agricultural processor
Archer Daniels Midland Co’s (ADM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) quarterly earnings fell as
a sharp jump in income tax expenses and soaring corn prices
dragged on results, sending its shares down 4 percent in
premarket trading.

Revenue increased and operating profit rose in each of
ADM’s business segments except for corn processing, which was
squeezed by record-high corn prices, the Decatur,
Illinois-based company reported on Tuesday.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Grain prices will likely remain elevated at the end of this year, a Reuters poll showed, providing little relief to food prices while continuing to challenge policymakers battling to tamp down inflation.

Many analysts say the era of cheap food may well be over as rising crop production struggles to keep pace with soaring global demand, particularly from the mushrooming middle-class populations of developing nations such as China and India.

WASHINGTON/CHICAGO (Reuters) – Ethanol appears almost certain to win the food-versus-fuel contest in the United States. But not just yet.

The Agriculture Department forecast that a tad more corn will be used to make ethanol than to feed livestock this year may be a false milestone: ethanol makers say they won’t use that much corn while producing a record amount of the biofuel, hewing to a more efficient conversion rate.

CHICAGO, July 14 (Reuters) – The worst drought in decades
tightened its grip on the southern U.S. Plains in the past week
as triple-digit temperatures and a lack of rain scorched cattle
grazing pastures and parched crops, according to a report
issued by U.S. climatologists on Thursday.

Exceptional drought, the most severe category measured by
climatologists, now encompassed more than 70 percent of Texas
and more than 40 percent of Oklahoma.

, May 10 (Reuters) – Rising
floodwaters on the Mississippi River have displaced thousands
of residents and flooded 3 million acres of farmland as it
surges past Memphis to the U.S. Gulf Coast, where it threatens
to disrupt 10 oil refineries in Louisiana.

Gasoline prices RBc1 jumped by more than 2 percent in New
York on Tuesday as traders speculated that the massive flooding
from heavy spring rains and snow melt could disrupt refineries
on southern stretches of the Mississippi in the next two
weeks.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Nearly 3 million acres of farm land in three southern states have been submerged by flood waters from the raging Mississippi River and its smaller tributaries, adding to troubles in seeding this year’s crops in the world’s top grain exporter.

Although the area constitutes 1 percent land seeded with major crops in the United States, the loss comes at a time when grains have soared due to dwindling supplies, weather woes in other exporting nations and increased consumption.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Archer Daniels Midland Co (ADM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) posted a slight gain in its agricultural services business, held back by volatile commodities prices, instability in the Middle East and Africa, and delayed shipments in Japan.

ADM’s disappointing performance in agricultural services, the company’s largest segment in terms of revenue, was in contrast to results reported last week by rival agribusiness Bunge Ltd (BG.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and ADM’s shares fell 4.9 percent. [ID:nN28188160]