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Contact:
Heidi Gant
(O) 317-692-7828
(C) 317-966-3719
HGant@infb.org

(Indianapolis) – Jan. 12, 2024 – Indiana Farm Bureau’s Chief Economist Todd Davis is offering his insights on the latest World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report released earlier this afternoon by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

“The big surprise from the USDA this month was a reported record U.S. corn yield and crop,” said Dr. Davis. “USDA reported a record corn yield for Indiana at 203 bushels per acre. With the dry weather most Indiana farmers had last summer, an incredibly successful harvest came as a pleasant surprise.”

According to Dr. Davis, the biggest growth area for corn demand in the January WASDE report was in export numbers. The USDA is projecting exports to increase 25% from last year’s crop.

“Exports are always a wild card,” added Dr. Davis. “Although there is some production uncertainty in South America that could increase our exports, the U.S. has a strong dollar which makes our exports less competitive in the world market.”

The U.S. soybean yield, although not a record this year, also increased. Dr. Davis added that because a lot of farmers switched acres from soybeans to corn last year, that resulted in a drop in the overall soybean crop for 2023. Indiana harvested a record soybean yield of 61 bushels per acre.

Read Dr. Davis’s full insights here.

The WASDE report is released monthly and provides annual forecasts for supply and use of U.S. and world wheat, rice, coarse grains, oilseeds and cotton. For more information about the report process and data, visit the USDA’s publications page.

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About Indiana Farm Bureau: For more than 100 years, Indiana Farm Bureau (INFB) has protected and enhanced the future of agriculture and our communities. As the state’s largest general farm organization, INFB works diligently to cultivate a thriving agricultural ecosystem to strengthen the viability of Indiana agriculture. Learn more at INFB.org.