USDA - 2010 corn areage up slightly from 2009

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that U.S. corn growers planted 87.9 million acres this year, a 2 percent increase over 2009 but lower than a March report had predicted, surprising many analysts. Once again, our nation’s corn farmers are showing their resilience, the National Corn Growers Association said.

Assuming the current average yield of 163.5 bushels per acre, growers would bring in a record 13.2 billion bushels of corn this fall from 81 million acres. In its March Prospective Plantings report, USDA predicted 88.8 million acres would be planted and 81.8 million would be harvested.

"We’re entering an interesting time as corn growers,” said NCGA President Darrin Ihnen. “Rapidly rising yields allow us to grow more on less land. With only a 2 percent acreage addition, growers will again produce a crop that not only exceeds demand but enough to store record amounts for the next season. It’s an exciting time for growers, and we’re looking forward to a great year where we can meet all needs for food, feed, fuel and fiber.”

The largest increases in planted acreage compared to last year are reported in Illinois and Kansas, both up 600,000 acres from 2009. Other notable increases were shown in Indiana, up 400,000 acres; Missouri, up 300,000 acres; and Ohio, up 250,000 acres. The largest decrease in planted acreage is reported in Iowa, down 400,000 acres, while both Nebraska and South Dakota are down 350,000 acres from the previous year.

While corn acreage nationally is higher, the total crop land in usage in the U.S. has dropped over 6 million acres since 2008. States experiencing a decline in acres planted include: Texas, 4 percent; South Dakota, 7 percent; Nebraska, 4 percent; Iowa, 3 percent; Minnesota, 1.3 percent.

In Tuesday’s Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin, USDA related that, nationally 7 percent of the corn crop was at or beyond the silking stage, 3 percentage points ahead of last year and 2 percentage points ahead of the 5-year average. Due to warm temperature in North Carolina, progress is 30 percentage points ahead of the normal pace. USDA reported that overall 73 percent of the corn crop was in good to excellent condition, down 2 percentage points from ratings last week but slightly better than the same time last year.

The top 10 states in terms of corn acreage planted are: Iowa, 13.3 million; Illinois, 12.6 million; Nebraska, 8.8 million; Minnesota, 7.5 million; Indiana, 6.0 million; Kansas, 4.7 million; South Dakota, 4.6 million; Wisconsin, 3.9 million; Ohio, 3.6 million; and Missouri, 3.3 million.

The USDA also reports that, as of June 1, corn inventories remaining from last year’s record harvest totaled 4.3 billion bushels. This is up 1.1 percent from this time in 2009 (4.2 billion bushels) and is the highest since 1988.

USDA June 30 Acreage Report.
USDA June 30 Grain Stocks Report.