Crop Acreage Expectations and Grain Stocks

Earlier this week USDA released their annual Prospective Plantings report and their quarterly Grain Stocks report (both on Tuesday, March 31). The Prospective Plantings report uses the results of producer surveys from late February through early March to set the tone for the acreage allocation of various crops in each state (and the nation). The stocks report summarizes the level of grain inventories in terminal elevators and on farm grain bins.

The plantings report revealed that U.S. producers intend to plant 89.199 million acres of corn this summer, 84.635 million acres of soybeans, and 9.549 million acres of cotton. In Mississippi, growers plan to plant 570,000 acres of corn, 2.3 million acres of beans, and 350,000 acres of cotton. Market expectations looked for fewer corn acres and more bean acres. This resulted in a sharp drop in corn prices following the release of the report.

More on the report as it relates to Mississippi can be found HERE.

Supplies of corn and soybeans were in-line with expectations, but interestingly on-farm storage continues to point toward farmer hoarding. Corn held on-farms was up 13% versus last March and soybeans stocks on-farms was up 60%! Keep in mind, that at some point these bushels will need to be sold.