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Corn Yields and Soybean Acres Set 2017 Records

Cindy Zimmerman

Corn yields and soybean acreage set records in 2017, according to the Crop Production summary from USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) out Friday.

Corn production was four percent lower in 2017 compared to 2016, but a record high 176.6 bushel per acre yield helped to make up a little bit for the five percent drop in harvested acres. The 2017 corn objective yield data indicate the third highest number of ears per acre on record for the combined objective yield states with record high ear counts in South Dakota. Yields were two percent higher than 2016, which NASS attributes to a lack of extreme heat across the Midwest last year.

Meanwhile, the nation’s soybean yield was down 6 percent from 2016, but production reached a record level due to record high acreage. Soybean production for 2017 totaled a record 4.39 billion bushels, up 2 percent from 2016 with harvested acreage at a record 89.5 million acres is up 8 percent from 2016.

All cotton production in 2017 is up 24 percent from 2016, at 21.3 million 480-pound bales. The U.S. yield is estimated at 899 pounds per acre, up 32 pounds from last year’s yield. Harvested area, at 11.3 million acres, is up 19 percent from last year.

Sorghum grain production in 2017 is estimated at 364 million bushels, down 24 percent from 2016. Area planted for sorghum, at 5.63 million acres, is down 16 percent from last year. Harvested area, at 5.05 million acres, is down 18 percent from 2016. Grain yield is estimated at 72.1 bushels per acre, down 5.8 bushels from last year. Record high yields are estimated in Colorado, Georgia, and Missouri.

Corn, Cotton, sorghum, Soybean, USDA