The high plains drought is so bad that Kansas is importing wheat from Europe

Kansas wheat farmers will reap the smallest harvest in more than 60 years. Persistent drought withered much of the crop.
SYLVAN GROVE, Kansas — Kansas is “the wheat state,” the officially adopted moniker that embraces its place as the country’s breadbasket.

Tall white grain elevators, some decorated with wheat murals, loom over tiny farm towns. For decades, Kansas led the nation in wheat production, and the U.S. led the world in wheat exports.

But this year’s meager wheat harvest turns that proud tradition on its head.

Kansas flour mills will likely buy wheat grown in Eastern Europe. It’s like Texas importing oil, West Virginia hauling in coal, or the Saudis shipping in sand.

Aaron Harries, Vice President of Research and Operations at Kansas Wheat, said it’s never happened before.