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Corn seed developers who have been racing to build better varieties for low rainfall and high heat say results have been encouraging despite the worst U.S. drought in half a century. Triple-digit temperatures (Fahrenheit) coupled with historically dry conditions ravaged farm fields across the nation, with some of the most severe conditions gripping the top U.S. corn growing states in the Midwest and Plains states.

Opponents of genetically engineered foods on Wednesday blocked shipments and deliveries at Monsanto Co's vegetable seed company in California that developed a new genetically modified sweet corn that will hit stores this fall. The protesters, who want to remove all so-called genetically modified organisms (GMOs) from the food supply, say their action is a preview of about five dozen other events planned for countries around the world next week.

A U.S. farmer group said on Tuesday it is dropping its opposition to efforts by Dow AgroSciences to roll out a new biotech crop system in exchange for a series of commitments by Dow, including help investigating any accidental crop damage. The deal calls for "several new safeguards" from Dow AgroSciences related to use of a reformulated herbicide and biotech crops that Dow has engineered to be used with the herbicide, and could help speed regulatory approval for the unit of Dow Chemical.

Shares of Monsanto, the world's largest seed company, rose on Thursday and DuPont shares fell after Monsanto won a $1 billion victory over its archrival in a lawsuit concerning patents in the agricultural seed market. The victory, which dealt with genetically modified seeds that allow crops to tolerate weed killer, should have little immediate impact in that lucrative marketplace. But it underscores Monsanto's dominance over popular seed technology and could slow DuPont's advancement, analysts said.

Efforts to write benefits for biotech seed companies into U.S. legislation, including the 2013 Farm Bill, are sparking a backlash from groups that say the multiple measures would severely limit U.S. oversight of genetically modified crops. From online petitions to face-to-face lobbying on Capitol Hill, an array of consumer and environmental organizations and individuals are ringing alarm bells over moves they say will eradicate badly needed safety checks on crops genetically modified to withstand herbicides, pests and pesticides.

Ranchers are rushing to sell off some of their cattle as the worst drought in nearly 25 years dries up pastures, thins hay supplies and sends feed costs sky-rocketing. The more desperate in the Midwest are hauling water into areas where creeks have run dry and are scrambling to secure scarce and high-priced hay to keep their cattle fed and watered. But some are giving up, or are about to.

Bob Bowman runs his hand over a slender green corn leaf here on his Iowa farm, and sighs. "This corn should be as high as my head right now, and it is only waist high," he says, as a cool morning breeze belies the 90-degree Fahrenheit temperatures forecast to descend by afternoon in Welton, Iowa. "If we get rain real quick here, we might be down 25 percent," said Bowman of prospective losses from the persistent dryness. "If we don't get rain in the next two weeks, it will be a lot more serious."

Scorching heat and rain-less skies continued to frustrate U.S. Midwestern farmers on Wednesday, with damage to the corn and soybean crops growing more dire by the day. "There are a lot of people thinking of chopping their corn up and feeding it to cows," said University of Missouri Professor of Plant Sciences William Wiebold. "The attitude is not real good right now. For some farmers the crop is already gone. The longer we go without rain the more farmers will be in that situation."

Opening arguments were underway Tuesday in a potentially pivotal legal battle between agricultural giants Monsanto and DuPont over Monsanto's control of a popular seed technology worth billions of dollars. The rivals have been fighting for years and the trial in federal court in St. Louis represents only part of an ongoing argument over the use of lucrative seed technology that makes soybeans, corn and other crops tolerant of glyphosate-based herbicide, letting farmers spray the weed killer directly over the crops.

People in the United States and other advanced nations consume an average of 1,200 calories per day more than those in low-income countries, but even in these wealthy nations food supplies lack enough micro-nutrients, according to a report issued on Tuesday. The "Global Food Security Index" found that the United States, Denmark, Norway and France led the world in food security thanks to ample supplies, high incomes, low costs for food relative to other expenditure and significant research and development concentrated on food production. The least secure nations were largely found in sub-Saharan Africa, including Ethiopia, Rwanda, Nigeria and Mozambique.