Cold Snaps Delay Corn Harvest in China’s Northeastern Region

Cold snaps are hitting China’s northeastern region, disrupting harvesting of grains from corn to rice and bolstering prices.

Extreme weather patterns from heavy rains to scorching temperatures have battered various agricultural producing regions in China this year, damaging quality and threatening output. The weather woes in the top grains belt pose a fresh test of the country’s drive to achieve food security. China is the world’s largest corn and soybean importer.

Heavy snowstorms are hitting parts of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Inner Mongolia this week, which would could hurt drying, storage and transport of autumn grains, the National Meteorological Center said in a report on Monday.

Harvesting of corn and soybeans in the northeast is coming to an end and supplies are ready to hit the market. However, rain and snow, brought by the cold snaps, are impacting the logistics and sale of grains like corn, while farmers are holding off from sales, which could stabilize prices, Holly Futures said in a report on Monday.

China’s corn futures traded on the Dalian Commodity Exchange have rebounded since the middle of October, and rose almost 1% to 2,575 yuan ($354) per ton on Monday. Prices of the feed grain have been under pressure due to poor demand from the struggling livestock sector.

The blizzards and strong winds in the northeast will increase the difficulty of harvesting rice in parts of Liaoning province, and could damage corn that is still being dried in some areas of Jilin and Heilongjiang. Greenhouses could be damaged and vegetables in an early growth stage could be frozen as well, the agriculture ministry warned over the weekend.

Tags: China, corn