Minnesota Corn Farmers Blindsided By USDA Report Showing Bigger-Than-Expected Corn Glut

By Tadeo Ruiz Sandoval

The USDA released new data showing corn production was much higher than previously expected. The news sent already depressed corn prices tumbling.

The January World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report provides forecasts of corn production from the previous harvest season, making it a newsmaker because it often sets the tone for markets.

Before the report was released, ag analysts expected yields to hover somewhere around 16.5 billion bushels. But the USDA report projects that farmers produced more than that, pulling in 17 billion bushels

Megan Roberts, an agricultural economist for Farm Credit Cooperative, Compeer Financial, said that is a new record in U.S. corn production.

“It's really hard to wrap your head around how big 17 billion bushels is,” Roberts said. “That was shocking to the market, because it is now the record corn production ever in the U.S.”

The higher production level was driven by increased harvested acreage and higher yields.

Roberts added that, after accounting for expected corn exports and commercial use, there will still be over 2 billion bushels left to deal with.