Home

Corn Harvest Quality Report 2017/2018

Contents

  1. Harvest Quality Highlights
  2. Introduction
  3. Quality Test Results
  4. Grade Factors
  5. Moisture
  6. Chemical Composition
  7. Physical Factors
  8. Stress Cracks
  9. 100-Kernel Weight
  10. Kernel Volume
  11. Kernel True Density
  12. Whole Kernels
  13. Horneous (Hard) Endosperm
  14. Mycotoxins
  15. Assessing the Presence of Aflatoxins and DON
  16. Background: General
  17. Background: Aflatoxins
  18. Background: Don (Deoxynivalenol) Or Vomitoxin
  19. Crop and Weather Conditions
  20. Planting and Early Growth Conditions
  21. Pollination and Grain Fill Conditions
  22. Harvest Conditions
  23. Comparison of 2016 to 2015, 2014, and 5YA
  24. U.S. Corn Production, Usage and Outlook
  25. U.S. Corn Production
  26. U.S. Corn Use and Ending Stocks
  27. Outlook
  28. Survey and Statistical Analysis Methods
  29. Overview
  30. Survey Design and Sampling
  31. Statistical Analysis
  32. Test Analysis Methods
  33. Corn Grading Factors
  34. Moisture
  35. Chemical Composition
  36. Physical Factors
  37. Mycotoxin Testing
  38. U.S. Corn Grades and Conversions
Download report

U.S. Corn Production

U.S. Average Production and Yields

According to the November 2016 United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report, average U.S. corn yield for the 2016 crop is projected to be 11.0 mt/ha (175.3 bu/ac). This is 0.4 mt/ha (6.9 bu/ac) higher than the average yield for the 2015 corn crop and the highest average yield on record.

The number of hectares harvested in 2016 is projected to be 35.1 million (86.8 mil ac). This is 2.4 mil ha (6.1 mil ac) more than in 2015. The projected 35.1 mil ha harvested in 2016 ranks third over the last 80 years and third-highest in the past 10 years.

While 2016 saw the third-highest number of harvested hectares in the past decade, the 2016 crop also experienced the highest average yield on record, thereby producing a crop estimated to be the largest U.S. corn crop on record at 386.8 mmt (15,226 mil bu). This crop was about 41.3 mmt (1,625 mil bu) larger than 2015’s crop (345.5 mmt or 13,601 mil bu).

ASD and State-Level Production

The geographic areas included in the 2016/2017 Corn Harvest Quality Report encompass the highest corn-producing areas in the United States. This can be seen on the map showing projected 2016 corn production by USDA Agricultural Statistical District (ASD).

Relative to the corn crop produced in 2015, the larger 2016 crop was driven by higher production in 10 of the 12 key corn-producing states. The largest increase in production levels occurred in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, and North Dakota. Kentucky produced about the same amount of corn in 2016 as in 2015, while there was slightly lower production in South Dakota in 2016 than in 2015.

The U.S. Corn Production table summarizes the differences in both quantity (mmt) and percentages between 2015 and projected 2016 corn production for each state. Also included is an indication of the relative changes in harvested acres and yield between 2015 and projected 2016. The green bar indicates a relative increase and the red bar indicates a relative decrease from 2015 to projected 2016. This illustrates that harvested acres were largely unchanged to higher. Yield changes were mixed, with large increases (greater than 10%) in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, and North Dakota, and slight decreases in only two states – Kentucky and South Dakota.

[1] mt – metric ton; mmt – million metric tons; ha – hectare; bu – bushel; mil bu – million bushels; ac – acre.