OSHKOSH, Wis. – Chatter at the Wisconsin Public Service farm show is about surging grain prices due to the Ukraine war. The price for wheat is $9 per bushel — up from $5 and the highest in years. Why so? Harvests in Ukraine, the “Bread Basket of Europe,” are slipping and expected to slip more with the Russian aggression. Price hikes are rippling through markets worldwide as a result. Jack Kaltenberg, a wheat producer near Portage, said that uncertainty is driving up the prices of all grains. Said Congress member Mike Gallagher, R-Wisconsin: “It just goes to show that war is not something that can be isolated. It has global effects and and we’ve seen for the last two years how painful supply chain disruptions can be.” There were calls for Congress to stabilize prices by bringing back the strategic grain reserve, which was eliminated in the 1990s.
