Minnesota Has Bumper Corn Crop, Low Prices

source: StarTribune

Corn farmers in Minnesota are preparing for a near-record harvest thanks to a smooth, fast spring planting and favorable summer weather, reports theStarTribune.

Problem is, corn prices are horrible.

The state’s corn crop was 97% silking on Monday, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). That’s well ahead of the five-year average for this stage of the growing season and far better than last year, when only 75% of the corn crop was silking.

“I just drove 2½ hours this morning and saw the best crop I’ve ever seen in early August,” Dennis Inman, vice president of grain for CFS Cooperative, told theStarTribune. The co-op runs 18 grain elevators, mostly in southeast Minnesota.

Elevators in Minnesota are offering well under $3 per bushel to farmers this week. The break-even price for corn in the state is somewhere around $3.80 per bushel.