Corn and Soybean Crop Conditions Hold Steady

With September arriving and fall on the horizon, crop conditions for corn and soybeans continue to remain above prior-year and five-year average levels. USDA’s September 4 Crop Progress report indicates that 67 percent of the U.S. corn crop is in good-to-excellent condition, down 1 percentage point from last week. Analysts expected the conditions to remain unchanged for a second week in a row, regardless of the large amounts of precipitation seen across the Corn Belt. The percent of crops in good-to-excellent condition is up over the five-year average of 66 percent and up 6 percentage points over the prior year. Crops in poor-to-very-poor condition have remained unchanged from the previous two weeks’ 12 percent. Figure 1 outlines corn crops in good-to-excellent condition on a state-by state-level.

For the week ending September 3, USDA reports 66 percent of the soybean crop is in good-to-excellent condition, unchanged from last week. The percent of crops in good-to-excellent condition continue to be up 5 percentage points from last year’s 61 percent and up 3 percentage points from the five-year average of 63 percent. Soybean crops in poor-to-very-poor condition have remained unchanged from the previous two weeks, at 11 percent. Figure 2 illustrates the soybean crops in good-to-excellent condition on a state-by-state level.