Sixth state in a 12-state tour
By Diego Flammini, Farms.com
The Farms.com Risk Management team, led by Chief Commodity Strategist Moe Agostino are on a 12-state tour of the US Corn Belt.
During their state visits they meet with local farmers to get an in-depth look at how crop fields are performing and how elements such as weather will impact yield and prices.
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas had been visited before the team visited Nebraska, the third largest corn producing state in the United States.
Throughout the state visits, a common theme occurs.
“Too much moisture has delayed some of the crops and they’re behind,” Agostino said.
However, if crops in Nebraska do get too dry, the farmers there have an alternative to Mother Nature’s rain – pivots and irrigation.
While visiting a soybean field near Norfolk, Nebraska, Agostino saw a familiar-looking field.
“It looks like a lot of the fields we’ve seen to date,” he said. “Excess moisture is taking its toll on a lot of soybean fields across the Midwest. If this continues it could lead to potential drop in yield.”
Despite some of the weather being seen across the Midwest, farmers are managing to have success in their fields.
“We’ve had some real good balanced rain,” said Richard Travers, a farmer from Hartington, Nebraska. “Inch, inch and-a-half a week. The heat units are kicking in now and the beans are loving it.”
Be sure to follow the 2015 US Corn Belt Crop Tour on Twitter using the hashtag #CornBelt15.
The tour’s next stop will be in South Dakota.