Washington, DC
January 11, 2008
The 2007 U.S. corn crop was one
for the record books, with 13.1 billion bushels of production
eclipsing the previous high, set in 2004, of 11.8 billion
bushels, according to the Crop Production 2007 Summary released
today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s
National Agricultural
Statistics Service (NASS). The 2007 production level was up
24 percent from 2006.
Driven by favorable prices, growing ethanol demand and strong
export sales, farmers in nearly all states increased their corn
acreage in 2007. Planted area, at 93.6 million acres, was up 19
percent from 2006 to the highest level since 1944, when farmers
planted 95.5 million acres. The 86.5 million acres harvested for
grain was the most since 1933, and up 22 percent from 2006.
Those acres yielded an average of 151.1 bushels of corn, the
second highest yield on record after 2004’s 160.4 bushels per
acre, and up 2 bushels from last year.
The shift to corn led U.S. farmers to plant and harvest 16
percent fewer soybean acres in 2007 than in 2006. A total of
63.6 million acres were planted, and 62.8 million were
harvested. Soybean production, at 2.6 billion bushels, was down
19 percent from the record high of 3.2 billion bushels in 2006,
while the average yield per acre was at 41.2 bushels, 1.5
bushels below last year.
For 2007, all cotton yield reached a record-high 871 pounds per
acre, up 57 pounds from last year and surpassing the previous
record of 855 pounds set in 2004. Total production came in a 19
million 480-pound bales, down 12 percent from last year’s 21.6
million bales. Still this is the fourth-highest production on
record, following 2005, 2004 and 2006, respectively. Harvested
area, at 10.5 million acres, was down 18 percent from 2006.
Grain sorghum production, at 505 million bushels, was up 82
percent from 2006, thanks to favorable growing conditions
throughout the major sorghum-producing region. Planted area
totaled 7.72 million acres, up 18 percent from 2006. Harvested
acreage, at 6.81 million acres, was up 38 percent. Nationwide,
yields averaged 74.2 bushels per acre, with yield records set in
Texas and Arkansas and tied in Kansas and Nebraska.
For rice, the 2007 U.S. yield of 7,185 pounds per acre is a
record, topping the previous high of 6,988 pounds per acre set
in 2004. Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Missouri all had
record yields as well. Overall, 2007 rice production was 197
million hundredweight, up 2 percent from last year. Both planted
and harvested acres were down 3 percent from 2006.
The full Crop Production 2007 Summary is available online at
www.nass.usda.gov. The report contains year-end acreage, yield
and production estimates for grains and hay; oilseeds; cotton,
tobacco and sugar; dry beans, peas and lentils; and potatoes and
miscellaneous crops. |
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