Crop prices spike with July drought

Ears of corn in the Midwest are curling up and shutting down in the broiling afternoon sun, a disastrous scenario that could set the stage for higher food prices.

Historic heat and drought are destroying crops and sending agricultural commodity prices through the roof, with the cost of a bushel of corn in the December contract increasing 45 percent since the beginning of June. Wheat and soybean prices have jumped as well.