Farmers issue warning about silent threat targeting US food supply — here's what you need to know

Farmers throughout the United States are contending with a chaotic form of extreme weather more often, one that poses a specifically grave threat to our food supply chains.

What's happening?

Agriculture news site Morning Ag Clips recently reported that hail, long considered a weather anomaly and a rare occurrence, is becoming increasingly disruptive to agricultural operations, and the problem isn't limited to one region. 

Once rare, hailstorms are not just increasing in frequency — they're also becoming far more destructive. A powerful hailstorm hit Spain's Girona province in 2022 following a marine heat wave, devastating crops and causing at least one fatality.

It's true that extreme weather is not a new phenomenon. But experts have said rising global temperatures are influencing their frequency and severity in much the same way steroids can impact sports.

Why are supercharged hailstorms a threat to the food supply?

As the outlet pointed out, severe hailstorms "can arrive without warning and devastate entire fields in minutes," packing a one-two punch of volatility and destruction. 

This uptick in hailstorms constitutes a "major, underreported risk to global food production," according to Morning Ag Clips' report.

Hailstorm frequency is rising at a staggering rate. The article indicated that there were "5,373 significant hail events" in the United States in 2024, up 43% over 2021 (when there were 3,762 hailstorms in total).

The site further explained that, unlike other, more predictable forms of supercharged weather, like flooding and drought conditions, hailstorms are a "sudden impact threat." Without time to prepare, Morning Ag Clips said farmers can lose an entire crop in minutes, adding that in "severe cases, entire harvests are written off."

Because hail can strike suddenly and storms aren't confined to one geographical region, cumulative crop losses pose a threat to food supply chains — and people who grow food at home have also seen devastating hail-related crop losses.

What's being done about the effect of extreme weather events on farming?

Johan Jaques, chief meteorologist at the environmental tech company Kisters, said that the firm developed a system that collects data on hail events for a proprietary program aimed at farmers.

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Jaques observed that while it's not possible to "stop a hailstorm," being able to "respond to it intelligently" was a way farmers could limit their impact.

Anti-hail "netting" is another approach to the unpredictable storms, and "crop hail insurance" can protect farmers from excessive financial losses. Our guide on critical climate issues has additional advice for navigating issues like climate-driven weather events.

Jaques said that extreme weather "is no longer the exception," calling it "the new normal," for which farmers need "every tool they can get to stay one step ahead." 

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