In the past 20 years, U.S. soybean production has soared by 56 percent, driven by higher yields per acre and larger plantings of the oilseed, said the USDA on Monday. Soybeans are the most valuable farm export, although corn remains the most widely planted field crop.
“Net soybean returns were positive in more years than for corn and wheat, which may explain the growth in soybean acreage relative to those crops,” said the Economic Research Service. From 2002 to 2022, soybean plantings grew by 18 percent, to 87.5 million acres. Corn area expanded by 12 percent, to 88.6 million acres, in the same time period while wheat sowing fell by 24 percent to 45.7 million acres.
“The U.S. soybean industry has grown over the past two decades in terms of acreage, yield and production,” wrote ERS economists Kate Vaiknoras and Todd Hubbs. Almost all soybeans are grown from genetically engineered seeds. The soybean harvest of 4.276 billion bushels last year was 1.5 billion bushels larger than the 2002 crop.
The USDA report is available here.