Wheat pain & early fieldwork

Monday marks the first weekly Crop Progress report of the year at USDA. And, the story it tells for the Plains wheat crop is more of a nightmare. As of Sunday, 31% of the Kansas wheat crop, 16% of the Oklahoma crop and 12% of the crop in Texas is rated good-to-excellent, according to Monday's report. While 34% of the Kansas crop is in poor to very poor condition, that number worsens moving south: Fifty-three percent of Oklahoma's crop is rated poor-to-very-poor, while 61% of Texas' crop is in poor to very poor shape. It underscores the worries expressed by many in the wheat world, like Bill Spiegel, communications director for Kansas Wheat.

Read more: Plains wheat worries continue