Owatonna: A US crop tour estimated the Iowa corn crop this year at 141.8 bushels per acre, below the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) August outlook for the state at 151.0 bushels per acre. Also the Minnesota corn crop was forecast at 141.0 bushels per acre, below USDA's outlook of 150.0 bushels. Iowa's corn and soybean production potential increased as the crop scouts moved northward, while drier weather and less desirable soils in southern Iowa trimmed production prospects.Most of Minnesota's corn and soybean area appeared poised for a banner year but the southwest corner of the state fell short of expectations due to hot and dry weather. "The crop conditions have declined especially in the southwest," said Mike Hunst, Minnesota State Statistician.
The Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour estimates compared with a tour forecast for Iowa in 1994 at a record 141.1 bushels per acre and was well above last year's prediction for 132.2 bushels per acre, said Scott Davis, a Pro Farmer leader of this year's tour.The Minnesota forecast was 152.6 bushels per acre compared with the forecast by the Pro Farmer tour last year. Crop tour director Chip Flory said the crop scouts this year took a record 1,802 samples from corn and soybean fields in seven key Midwest states including Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Minnesota.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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