Farmers to plant more feed grain in 2013

Soybeans

The projected 7.71 million acres of planted soybeans is only 72,000 acres less than planted in the US in 2012, but if realised it will still be the fourth-largest year for soybeans in US history.

Planting in the Great Plains is expecting to decline, with the exception of Illinois and North Dakota, which are expecting large increases, according to the report. Illinois leads all states in total anticipated acreage at 9.4 million acres.

Georgia, while not a major soybean-producing state, will have the largest increase, going from 220,000 acres in 2012 to 280,000 in 2013.

Corn
Growers are expected to plant 97.3 million acres of corn, which is up just slightly from the 97.16 planted in 2012. The 2013 estimate is a 6% increase from 2011. If the 2013 projection is realised, this will be largest acreage in the U.S. since 1936, when an estimated 102 million acres were planted.

The state with the biggest percentage increase in corn production is Georgia, where acreage is expected to jump from 345,000 acres to 495,000 acres — a 43% leap. It drops the most in California, but that is only an 8% decrease from 610,000 acres to 560,000 acres.

Iowa, the nation’s leading corn-producing state, will stay steady at 14.2 million

Sorghum
Sorghum acreage will grow by a larger percentage in 2013 than any other feed grain. It will jump 22% from 6.2 million acres in 2012 to 7.6 million acres.

Texas is expected to surpass Kansas as the nation’s leading sorghum producer, going from 2.3 million acres to 3 million acres. However, Kansas is also expected to increase its production, going from 2.5 million acres to 2.9 million acres.

Wheat
An estimated 56.4 million acres of wheat will be planted in 2013, which would be a 1% climb from 2012.

Iowa is expected to have the biggest increase in acreage percent-wise, going from 18,000 acres to 40,000 acres. Kansas, the nation’s top wheat-producing state, will drop about 2%, going from 9.5 million acres to 9.3 million acres. North Dakota, which ranks second, will also see a 2% drop. Oklahoma and Texas — also top producers are expected to have near-equal acreage.

To see the full report please click here.