USDA: 75% of Corn Rated Good to Excellent, 71% of Soybeans

Jul 11, 2018

The USDA's national good to excellent rating on soybeans held steady last week, while corn declined slightly. Some key U.S. growing areas have recently received too much rainfall, while others are expected to see a hot, dry pattern for most of this week, but for now, corn and beans are both in good shape overall.

As of Sunday, 75% of U.S. corn is rated good to excellent, down 1% on the week, with 37% of the crop silking, compared to 18% both last year and for the five-year average.

71% of U.S. soybeans are in good to excellent shape, unchanged from a week ago, with 47% of the crop blooming, compared to 27% on average, and 11% at the pod setting stage, compared to 4% normally this time of year.

80% of U.S. spring wheat is in good to excellent condition, a week to week improvement of 3%, with 81% of the crop headed, compared to the usual pace of 69%.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.