November 19, 2013
Ohio's corn crop may exceed last year's harvest
Ohio should have the nation's seventh biggest corn crop with 16 million tonnes, which would be about a 40% increase over 2012, according to the USDA.
Farmers in the state on average are projected to get 4.4 tonnes per acre. A year ago, the average yield in the state was 3.1 tonnes per acre. How that breaks down depends a lot on location.
Farmers said that yields will vary quite a bit because of strong summer storms that drenched some fields.
The USDA expects 2013 to end with a record cornharvest nationwide, predicting that farmers will bring in a little less than 356 million tonnes. That would be a 30% increase over a year ago when many corn-producing states suffered through a long drought. The record yield will have a negative effect on prices.
Ohio State University agricultural economist Barry Ward said when farmers choose to sell their cornwill have a big impact on how much money they make. He said some farmers who marketed most of their corn are likely to see less profit or even losses.
Alan Sundermeier, Ohio State University's agricultural extension agent for Wood County, said some areas on northwest Ohio's farm belt saw decreased yields but most farms had an above average crop.