Pro Farmer releases 2024 national corn and soybean estimates

Pro Farmer estimates the U.S. corn crop at 14.979 billion bu. using an average yield of 181.1 bu. per acre. We estimate the U.S. soybean crop at 4.740 billion bu. at an average yield of 54.9 bu. per acre.

2024 Crop Estimates National Corn and Soybeans_AgWeb.jpg
2024 Pro Farmer Crop Estimates
(Pro Farmer)

Note: The national estimates above reflect Pro Farmer’s view on production and yields. They take into account data gathered during Crop Tour and other factors like crop maturity, historical differences in Tour data versus USDA’s final yields, areas outside those sampled on Tour, etc. That’s why the state yield numbers below differ from the previously released Crop Tour figures.

Following are Pro Farmer’s state by state corn yield estimates:

Iowa: 212 bu. per acre. The southern two-thirds of Iowa showed strong yield potential. The northern third of the state showed impacts from too much rainfall early in the growing season.

Illinois: 220 bu. per acre. The Illinois corn yield will smash the record of 214 bu. per acre from 2022. While there is more variability in fields than we expected, the high-yielding fields far exceed those that disappointed.

Nebraska: 189 bu. per acre. Some of the dryland corn is as good as the irrigated acres and will pull the yield up this year. The irrigated corn won’t pull the yield down. We saw a limited number of irrigation pivots running on corn, suggesting farmers think the crop has enough moisture to finish.

Minnesota: 170 bu. per acre. The southern third of the state, which is normally the highest-yielding counties, is laden with drowned out spots and yellow corn from the heavy spring rainfall. But areas further north and east of I-35 are better than normal.

Indiana: 210 bu. per acre. The Indiana corn crop showed the most consistency of any of the crops we sampled last week. Ear counts and grain length were up from year-ago, while there’s plenty of soil moisture for most areas of the state to finish strong. The only real blemish was instances of tar spot.

Ohio: 197 bu. per acre. The Ohio corn crop won’t top last year’s record yield, but it won’t be far behind. The difference: This year’s crop has more variability.

South Dakota: South Dakota: 156 bu. per acre. There are two very different crops in South Dakota — the early planted and late planted acres. The later developing crop will be an anchor on yields to keep them from being bigger.

Following are Pro Farmer’s state by state soybean yield estimates:

Iowa: 67 bu. per acre. Soybean pod counts increased 10.2% from last year and were 9.9% above the three-year average. Soil moisture increased 41.6% from 2023 and 33.7% versus the three-year average.

Illinois: 68 bu. per acre. Pod counts jumped 11.7% from last year and 12.0% from the three-year average. Soil moisture rose 22.4% from 2023 and 15.9% from the three-year average.

Nebraska: 57 bu. per acre. Pod counts rose 1.1% from last year and 2.0% from the three-year average. Soil moisture jumped 35.5% from 2023 and 32.2% from the 2021-2023 average.

Minnesota: 49 bu. per acre. Pod counts rose 5.2% from last year but slipped 0.1% from the three-year average. Soil moisture jumped 28.3% from 2023 and 21.5% from the three-year average.

Indiana: 67 bu. per acre. Pod counts increased 7.6% from 2023 and 13.8% from the 2021-23 average. Soil moisture rose 3.7% from last year and 12.0% from the three-year average.

Ohio: 66 bu. per acre. Pod counts dropped 1.8% from last year but were 3.1% above the three-year average. Soil moisture increased 8.5% from last year but declined 4.2% from the three-year average.

South Dakota: 50 bu. per acre. Pod counts increased 1.3% from last year and 6.8% from the three-year average. Soil moisture jumped 18.2% from last year and 32.6% from the three-year average.