Corn has been dethroned as the king of crops as farmers report they intend to plant more soybeans than corn for the first time in 35 years.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says in its annual prospective planting report that farmers intend to plant 89 million acres in soybeans and 88 million acres in corn.
The primary reason is profitability. Corn costs much more to plant because of required demands for pest and disease control and fertilizer. When the profitability of both crops is close, farmers bet on soybeans for a better return. Plus with less demand for more expensive varieties like popcorn, farmers are looking at getting the most they can.
“We had a big reduction in the amount of popcorn that has been made available through contacting into Ohio. And those popcorn acres they are looking at what they should do with them. Since popcorn had a little bit more premium to it, then field corn did, they are looking at planting soybean into those fields, where a corn crop may have been when it was popcorn,” said Curtis Young.
The only year that soybean acres beat corn in recent memory was 1983 when the government pushed farmers to plant fewer acres to boost prices in the midst of the nation's worst farm crisis.
