# As Harvest Ramps Up, the Lower Mississippi River Is Falling Again

> The Lower Mississippi River at Memphis is falling again after a brief rise from Hurricane Helene, stalling barges during record corn and soybean harvests. Barge drafts and tow sizes have been cut. Ceres Consulting reports more draft cuts are likely if dry weather continues.

- Date: 2024-10-16 · published 2024-10-16T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: logistics · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/16504-as-harvest-ramps-up-the-lower-mississippi-river-is-falling-again
- Commodities: [Barge Freight (St. Louis)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/BARGE.md), [Corn](https://feedsoft.ai/c/CORN.md), [Soybeans](https://feedsoft.ai/c/SOY.md)

## Why it matters

Lower drafts reduce barge loads, which raises freight per ton and can cause river terminals to limit grain intake. Those costs tend to lower farm-gate bids for corn and soybeans during peak harvest selling.

## Read by commodity

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

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| CORN | 2024-09-10 | [Lower Mississippi River Water Levels Falling Just as Fall Harvest Begins](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16510-lower-mississippi-river-water-levels-falling-just-as-fall-harvest-begins.md) | +4.0% | +5.3% |
| CORN | 2024-08-14 | [Mississippi River to lower as harvests… \| PB Commercial](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16520-mississippi-river-to-lower-as-harvests-pb-commercial.md) | -0.7% | +0.6% |
| CORN | 2023-08-30 | [Low Mississippi River level will challenge grain movement again this harvest](https://feedsoft.ai/events/12853-low-mississippi-river-level-will-challenge-grain-movement-again-this-harvest.md) | -0.0% | -8.2% |
| CORN | 2023-08-28 | [Will It Be Deja Vu on the Lower Mississippi River This Fall?](https://feedsoft.ai/events/12855-will-it-be-deja-vu-on-the-lower-mississippi-river-this-fall.md) | -1.3% | -8.5% |
| CORN | 2025-09-25 | [Low water levels return to Mississippi River as harvest season begins \| Feed & Grain](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16423-low-water-levels-return-to-mississippi-river-as-harvest-season-begins-feed-and.md) | -2.5% | -1.8% |
| SOY | 2024-09-10 | [Lower Mississippi River Water Levels Falling Just as Fall Harvest Begins](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16510-lower-mississippi-river-water-levels-falling-just-as-fall-harvest-begins.md) | +0.5% | +3.4% |
| SOY | 2024-08-14 | [Mississippi River to lower as harvests… \| PB Commercial](https://feedsoft.ai/events/16520-mississippi-river-to-lower-as-harvests-pb-commercial.md) | -3.2% | -0.9% |
| SOY | 2023-08-30 | [Low Mississippi River level will challenge grain movement again this harvest](https://feedsoft.ai/events/12853-low-mississippi-river-level-will-challenge-grain-movement-again-this-harvest.md) | -1.6% | -5.7% |

## Sources

- dtnpf.com: https://www.dtnpf.com/agriculture/web/AG/columns/cash-market-moves/article/2024/10/14/harvest-ramps-lower-mississippi

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