USDA Crop Production Annual Summary

Jan 10, 2014

Corn for grain production is estimated at a record 13.9 billion bushels, down slightly from the November 1 forecast but 29 percent above 2012. The average yield in the United States is estimated at 158.8 bushels per acre. This is down 1.6 bushels from the November forecast but 35.4 bushels above the 2012 average yield of 123.4. Area harvested for grain is estimated at 87.7 million acres, up slightly from both the November forecast and 2012.

Sorghum grain production in 2013 is estimated at 389 million bushels, down 6 percent from the November 1 forecast but up 58 percent from 2012. Planted area is estimated at 8.06 million acres, up 29 percent from last year. Area harvested for grain, at 6.53 million acres, is up 32 percent from 2012. Average grain yield, at 59.6 bushels per acre, is down 2.6 bushels from the previous forecast but up 9.8 bushels from last year.

Rice: Production in 2013 is estimated 190 million cwt, up 1 percent from the previous forecast but down 5 percent from 2012. Planted area is estimated at 2.49 million acres, down 8 percent from 2012. Area harvested, at 2.47 million acres, is also down 8 percent from the previous crop year. The average yield for all United States rice is estimated at a record high 7,694 pounds per acre, up 34 pounds from the previous forecast and 245 pounds above the previous record high set last crop year.

Soybean production in 2013 totaled 3.29 billion bushels, up 1 percent from the November 1 forecast and up 8 percent from 2012. United States production is the third largest on record. The average yield per acre is estimated at 43.3 bushels, 0.3 bushel above the November 1 forecast and 3.5 bushels above last year's yield. Harvested area is down slightly from 2012 to 75.9 million acres and is the fourth highest on record.

All cotton production is estimated at 13.2 million 480-pound bales, up 1 percent from last month but down 24 percent from 2012. The United States yield is estimated at 826 pounds per acre, up 20 pounds from the December 1 forecast but down 61 pounds from last year. Harvested area, at 7.66 million acres, is down 1 percent from last month and down 18 percent from last year.

Source: USDA

Video: Spring 2026 weather outlook for Wisconsin; What an early-arriving El Niño could mean

Northeast Wisconsin is a small corner of the world, but our weather is still affected by what happens across the globe.

That includes in the equatorial Pacific, where changes between El Niño and La Niña play a role in the weather here -- and boy, have there been some abrupt changes as of late.

El Niño and La Niña are the two phases of what is collectively known as the El Niño Southern Oscillation, or ENSO for short. These are the swings back and forth from unusually warm to unusually cold sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean along the equator.

Since this past September, we have been in a weak La Niña, which means water temperatures near the Eastern Pacific equator have been cooler than usual. That's where we're at right now.

Even last fall, the long-term outlook suggested a return to neutral conditions by spring and potentially El Niño conditions by summer.

But there are some signs this may be happening faster than usual, which could accelerate the onset of El Niño.

Over the last few weeks, unusually strong bursts of westerly winds farther west in the Pacific -- where sea surface temperatures are warmer than average -- have been observed. There is a chance that this could accelerate the warming of those eastern Pacific waters and potentially push us into El Niño sooner than usual.

If we do enter El Nino by spring -- which we'll define as the period of March, April and May -- there are some long-term correlations with our weather here in Northeast Wisconsin.

Looking at a map of anomalously warm weather, most of the upper Great Lakes doesn't show a strong correlation, but in general, the northern tiers of the United States do tend to lean to that direction.

The stronger correlation is with precipitation. El Niño conditions in spring have historically come with a higher risk of very dry weather over that time frame, so this will definitely be a transition we'll have to watch closely as we move out of winter.