# Low River, Lower Prices: Mississippi Disruptions Hit Southern Farmers Hardest | Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station

> Research in Agribusiness from Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station economists finds that parts of Arkansas and other Southern states are among the most exposed to low Mississippi River conditions. Higher barge transport costs pass through the marketing system and weaken local grain basis for corn and soybeans.

- Date: 2026-10-21 · published 2026-10-21T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: logistics · region US · magnitude low
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/16329-low-river-lower-prices-mississippi-disruptions-hit-southern-farmers-hardest
- Commodities: [Corn](https://feedsoft.ai/c/CORN.md), [Soybeans](https://feedsoft.ai/c/SOY.md), [Barge Freight (St. Louis)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/BARGE.md)

## Why it matters

The study confirms that low river levels transfer freight costs to farmers as weaker local cash prices, which keeps Southern corn and soybean basis under pressure while river costs stay elevated.

## Read by commodity

- SOY: bearish ▼
- CORN: bearish ▼
- BARGE: bullish ▲

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| CORN | 2023-10-09 | [How low Mississippi River water levels could disrupt grain harvests, again \| Agriculture Dive](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16594-how-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-could-disrupt-grain-harvests-again.md) | -0.2% | -3.4% |
| CORN | 2022-09-30 | [Low Mississippi River water levels threaten U.S. agricultural exports - Marine Log](https://feedsoft.ai/events/39755-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-threaten-u-s-agricultural-exports-marine-log.md) | +1.0% | +3.8% |
| CORN | 2024-09-16 | [Low Mississippi River water levels disrupt barge shipping for third consecutive year \| Agriculture Dive](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16507-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-disrupt-barge-shipping-for-third-consecutive.md) | +1.6% | +2.7% |
| CORN | 2024-10-24 | [Low Mississippi River levels during harvest cut profits for farmers, freighters](https://feedsoft.ai/events/28043-low-mississippi-river-levels-during-harvest-cut-profits-for-farmers-freighters.md) | -1.3% | +1.0% |
| CORN | 2024-10-04 | [The Mississippi River is running low again: It’s a problem for farmers moving beans and grain – AgriNews](https://feedsoft.ai/events/28041-the-mississippi-river-is-running-low-again-it-s-a-problem-for-farmers-moving.md) | -1.3% | -2.9% |
| SOY | 2023-10-09 | [How low Mississippi River water levels could disrupt grain harvests, again \| Agriculture Dive](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16594-how-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-could-disrupt-grain-harvests-again.md) | +1.1% | +4.9% |
| SOY | 2022-09-30 | [Low Mississippi River water levels threaten U.S. agricultural exports - Marine Log](https://feedsoft.ai/events/39755-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-threaten-u-s-agricultural-exports-marine-log.md) | -3.7% | -2.0% |
| SOY | 2024-09-16 | [Low Mississippi River water levels disrupt barge shipping for third consecutive year \| Agriculture Dive](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16507-low-mississippi-river-water-levels-disrupt-barge-shipping-for-third-consecutive.md) | +2.6% | +1.9% |

## Sources

- aaes.uada.edu: https://aaes.uada.edu/news/fryar-river-level-economic-impacts/

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.