On Jan. 6, the Illinois Legislature passed HB 4439, which designates the soybean as Illinois’ official state bean.
Illinois is the No. 1 soybean-producing state in the country.
Fifteen percent of all U.S. soybeans are produced in Illinois and 13% of the country’s supply of soybeans is grown on Illinois farms, according to the Illinois Farm Bureau.
The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service estimates Illinois soybean farmers raised 648.9 million bushels on 10.3 million acres in the 2023 growing season.
Compared to 2022, total acreage and yield estimates were both down 4% in Illinois. Average soybean yields remained the same in 2023 at 63 bushels per acre.
Jonathan Coppess, University of Illinois associate professor of agricultural policy and law, and Jared Hutchins, assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, wrote an article for the farmdoc daily website about the soybean’s start in Illinois.
“Soybeans were introduced in Illinois in 1851 and credited to Dr. Benjamin Franklin Edwards. He traveled to San Francisco in 1849 to seek his fortune in the gold rush. In 1851, he returned to Alton, Illinois, carrying with him soybean seeds that he apparently received from a crew of Japanese sailors that had been held in quarantine after being rescued at sea,” they wrote.
“Dr. Edwards gave the soybean seed he acquired in San Francisco to John H. Lea of Alton. In the summer of 1851, Lea planted the soybeans in his garden then distributed the seeds he harvested.”
Illinois’ hold as the No. 1 producer of soybeans in the United States remains solid, according to the Illinois Department of Agriculture, with the top 11 counties for soybean yield in 2022 located in the Land of Lincoln.
“Piatt County took the top spot in soybean yield with 74.2 bushels per acre. Coming in at number two through 11 are Macon, Sangamon, Scott, Logan, Tazewell, Stark, Morgan, Christian, Champaign and Woodford counties,” the department said in a news release.
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