With extreme heat and the worst drought in half a century continuing to plague the farm states, there are important lessons to be learned for all of us - farmers, consumers and the world's poorest populations alike - about the effect of climate change.

The Agriculture Department announced this season's first major crop yield forecasts, and they weren't pretty: a nationwide average of 123.4 bushels of corn per acre, the lowest level since 1995. Soybean yield is expected to be low too, though not as bad as corn.

The United States, which is the world's largest producer and exporter of staple grains, is grappling with the biggest surprise in production shortfalls since the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. Certainly, this July surpassed July 1936 as the hottest month on record.

So, how will the devastation affect U.S. crop farmers?

Read - Extreme heat and droughts - a recipe for world food woes

Previously:

Farmer in the drought – if you plant it, it might not come
Farmer: 'If you eat, this drought will affect you'
Praying for rain in the Arkansas drought