US Soybean Harvest Moving at Fastest Pace in 14 Years

Progressive Farmer’s Anthony Greder reported Monday that “both the U.S. corn and soybean harvests are now double digits ahead of their five-year averages as dry weather continued across most of the country last week, USDA NASS reported in its weekly Crop Progress report on Monday.”

“Corn harvest moved ahead 18 percentage points nationally to reach 65% complete as of Sunday,” Greder reported. “That was 10 points ahead of last year’s 55% and 13 points ahead of the five-year average of 52%. Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin were all ahead of their five-year averages.”

“Soybean harvest slowed last week, moving ahead 14 percentage points to reach 81% complete as of Sunday,” Greder reported. “That was still 9 points ahead of last year’s 72% and 14 points ahead of the five-year average of 67%. ‘Key states Illinois and Iowa are 76% and 91% harvested, respectively, with Minnesota now 95% done,’ noted DTN Senior Analyst Dana Mantini.”

Reuters’ Renee Hickman reported that “the soybean harvest is proceeding at the fastest harvest pace in 14 years, and corn at the fastest pace since 2021, according to USDA data.”

Fast Harvest Straining Storage Facilities

Reuters’ Julie Ingwersen and Heather Schlitz reported Monday that “U.S. farmers are harvesting two of the largest corn and soybean crops in history at the fastest pace in years, straining their physical capabilities and their grain storage capacity.”

“Many Midwestern farmers still have grain left in storage from 2023, after they refused to sell a record corn crop due to low prices. Now, dry weather is accelerating this year’s harvests and forcing grain handlers in some areas to store corn outside, rather than in storage bins,” Ingwersen and Schlitz reported. “…Jeff O’Connor, who grows corn and soybeans near Kankakee, Illinois, said his employees only had a couple of half-days off to rest in the past month due to rapid harvesting. ‘My people and equipment would like a break,’ he said.”

“As soy harvesting winds down, farmers are moving on to corn, which typically yields more than three times as much grain per acre than soybeans. At some Midwest elevators, the flow of corn from the fields has been filling up storage, causing long lines of trucks waiting to dump their loads,” Ingwersen and Schlitz reported. “In Shell Rock, Iowa, ethanol producer POET is storing corn on the ground, local farmer Caleb Hamer said, adding that he dumped some of his harvest on a pile that looked like it held 1.5 million bushels. ‘We are harvesting a crop too fast for our storage infrastructure. That’s the biggest thing,’ said Chad Henderson, founder of Wisconsin-based Prime Agricultural Consultants.”

Reuters’ Hickman reported that “the rapid pace of harvesting and localized storage squeezes are forcing farmers to consider selling some crops for less than it cost to produce them, according to grain merchants and analysts.”

Warm, Dry Weather Set to Continue

Progressive Farmer’s Greder reported that “dry conditions and near- to above-normal temperatures are expected to continue for most of the country this week, although the Central Plains and Corn Belt could see some showers, according to DTN Ag Meteorologist John Baranick. ‘It continues to be very dry across most of the country, keeping harvest windows pretty wide open but soil moisture very low,’ Baranick said.”

“‘Right now there is very little to get in the way of the harvest,’ said Sterling Smith, an independent research analyst,” according to Hickman’s reporting.