The Mississippi River, after reaching historic lows last fall, is back on the rise. That means good news when you make groceries.
When the river dropped so low it uncovered century-old shipwrecks, tugboats couldn't haul as many barges as usual. Instead of pushing them two or three across, they had to be handled single-file. That meant fewer goods were making it to market, and it was more expensive to ship them.
"Before the river got shallow, it was running $22 to $24 a ton to get from the Midwest down to the elevators in New Orleans, and it got up to over $100 a ton," said Louisiana Ag commissioner Dr. Mike Strain. "Now we’re seeing them get back toward those lower freight rates, also, we're able to have barges at least two barges wide or wider further upriver."
Dr. Strain said the rising water and return to normal shipping has been a great help to farmers throughout the Mississippi valley.
"It's really helping us to be able to move grain and other cargos efficiently up and down the river," he said.
Dr. Strain said that, plus indications that farmers are in for a good growing season, means some grocery prices should be coming down.