Western Europe’s 2026 drought is squeezing farms, river transport and energy systems, with dry soils and record-low waterways turning a poor growing season into a wider economic threat. In the Netherlands, some potato growers are harvesting weeks early and expect yields to fall by about a third. French analysts say the maize crop could drop below 7 million metric tons, the smallest since 1976, while livestock farmers across Europe are using winter feed reserves months ahead of schedule. The Rhine and Danube have fallen to record lows, disrupting barges and industrial cooling. The drought is also worsening wildfire risk across the continent. World Weather Attribution, an international scientific collaboration, says human-driven warming has made agricultural drought substantially more likely in Western Europe, with sustained rainfall now urgently needed to ease pressure into autumn across exposed farming communities.