Ohio corn yield sets new state record

COLUMBUS – Ohio’s 2003 average corn yield is estimated at 156 bushels per acre, a new state record.

The yield is nine bushels above the previous record of 147 bushels per acre.

Producers harvested 3.07 million acres for grain, compared to 2.87 million acres in 2002.

Total state production of 478.9 million bushels, is 90 percent above the previous year’s production that was reduced by a severe drought.

Acreage harvested for silage is estimated at 170,000 acres, down 100,000 acres from last year. The average silage yield is estimated at 19.0 tons.

Hoped for more beans. Ohio farmers harvested 4.28 million acres of soybeans in 2003 and reported an average yield of 38 bushels per acre. This is seven bushels above the final 2002 yield, but slightly less than producers were anticipating earlier in the crop year.

Total soybean production is estimated at 162.6 million bushels, up 11 percent from the 146.3 million bushels produced last year.

Alfalfa yields averaged 3.4 tons of dry hay per acre, while all other hay averaged 2.6 tons per acre.

Production of all hay increased 6 percent from 2002 to 3.97 million tons.

Ohio’s winter wheat seeded acreage for 2004 is estimated at 900,000, down 15 percent from the previous year.

Miscellaneous crops. Burley tobacco production fell 6 percent from the previous year to an estimated 9.01 million pounds. This was due to a drop in harvested acreage and below normal yields.

Harvested acreage fell from 5,500 acres in 2002 to 5,300 in 2003, while the 2003 average yield of 1,700 pounds per acre is 50 pounds below last year and 108 pounds below the state’s five-year average yield.

Sugarbeet production is estimated at 46,000 tons, up 24 percent from 2002.

Ohio’s potato production in 2003 is estimated at 1.29 million hundredweight, an increase of 43 percent from 2002.

Harvested potato acreage is estimated at 4,300, up 100 acres from 2002. The average yield was reported to be 300 hundredweight per acre, up 85 hundredweight from last year.

National records. U.S. corn for grain production is estimated at 10.1 billion bushels, down 2 percent from the November forecast but up 12 percent from the 9.01 billion bushels produced in 2002.

The average U.S. grain yield is estimated at 142.2 bushels per acre, 1.0 bushel below the November forecast but up 12.2 bushels from 2002.

Both production and yield estimates are the largest on record.

The previous record for both was set in 1994 when production was estimated at slightly below the 10.1 billion bushels being estimated for 2003 and yield was 138.6 bushels per acre.

Dismal beans harvest. U.S. soybean production in 2003 totaled 2.42 billion bushels, 12 percent below the 2002 level. This is the lowest production level since 1996.

The average yield per acre is estimated at 33.4 bushels, 4.6 bushels below the 2002 final yield. This is the lowest yield since 1993.

National carryover. Of the total U. S. corn stocks, 5.29 billion bushels are stored on farms, up 10 percent from a year earlier.

Off-farm stocks, at 2.66 billion bushels, are down 6 percent from the previous year.

The September-November 2003 indicated disappearance is 3.26 billion bushels, compared with 2.97 billion bushels during the same period last year.

U. S. Soybeans stored in all positions Dec. 1, 2003 totaled 1.69 billion bushels, down 20 percent from a year earlier.

On-farm stocks totaled 820 million bushels, down 30 percent from a year ago. Off-farm stocks, at 866 million bushels, are down 8 percent from the previous year.

Indicated disappearance for September-November 2003 totaled 910 million bushels, up 8 percent from the same period a year earlier.

U. S all wheat stored in all positions on December 1, 2003 totaled 1.52 billion bushels, up 15 percent from a year ago.

The indicated September-November 2003 disappearance is 518 million bushels, up 20 percent from the same period a year earlier.