Startlingly high US corn and soybean yields possible | Food and Environment Reporting Network

With continued good weather, U.S. corn and soybean crops could be well above the records now projected for this year, says economist Carl Zulauf of Ohio State University. “The current crop conditions report suggests that yields are likely to be above trend line,” Zulauf writes after citing four methods to estimate the potential yields. He concludes “a U.S. corn yield in the low-to-mid 170s and U.S. soybean yield in the 47-48 range is attainable.”

By comparison, USDA projects a corn yield of 165.3 bushels an acre and a soybean yield of 45.2 bushels an acre. The records are 164.7 bushels of corn and 44 bushels an acre of soybeans, set in 2009, also the record harvest year for both crops. USDA will make its first estimate of the crops in August. However, it could update its projections on Friday in the monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report. USDA is sure to incorporate June 30 data showing corn and soybean stockpiles were larger than thought and that farmers planted more soybean land than expected.