Drought-hit farmers in US heartland hope Mississippi 'comes back'

[....] for a second straight year, dangerously low water levels in the Mississippi River have drastically curtailed river transport, and that means added costs and complications for the farmers of the American heartland.

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[The] soybean harvest isn't done, and the barges that in normal years would take his product downriver are in terribly short supply, slowing grain shipments to the Gulf of Mexico and points beyond, eventually to feed livestock around the world.

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After record global harvests this year, soybean and corn prices are depressed, and the buildup of grain reserves on US farms due to the problems on the Mississippi could keep prices low for some time.

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There are alternatives to river transport—mainly rail and truck—but they cost more and emit more carbon dioxide.

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The volume of grain shipped on the Mississippi has dropped by half from the average of the past three years, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

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