WASHINGTON, March 28, 2013- Growers intend to plant 97.3 million acres of corn in 2013, according to reports released today by USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). The USDA report is based on approximately 80,000 farmer surveys and is the first indication of planting intentions for this year.
“If realized, this will represent the highest planted acreage in the United States since 1936 when an estimated 102 million acres were planted,” noted the report. The expected 97.3 million acres of corn is up slightly from what farmers planted last year and six percent higher than 2011.
NASS’s expected soybean planted area for 2013 is estimated at 77.1 million acres, down slightly from last year but the fourth highest on record. Compared with 2012, planted area is down across the Great Plains with the exception of North Dakota. Nebraska and Minnesota are expecting the largest declines compared with last year, while Illinois and North Dakota are expecting the largest increases, NASS stated.
All wheat planted area for 2013 is estimated at 56.4 million acres, up 1 percent from 2012. The 2013 winter wheat planted area, at 42.0 million acres, is 2 percent above last year and up slightly from the previous estimate. All cotton planted area for 2013 is expected to total 10 million acres, 19 percent below last year.
NASS’s Grain Stocks report also released today indicated corn stocks on March 1, 2013 totaled 5.4 billion bushels, down 10 percent from a year ago. Of the total stocks, 2.67 billion bushels are stored on farms, down 16 percent from a year earlier. Off-farm stocks, at 2.73 billion bushels, are down 4 percent from a year ago. The December 2012 - February 2013 indicated disappearance is 2.63 billion bushels, compared with 3.62 billion bushels during the same period last year.
Soybeans stocks totaled 999 million bushels, down 27 percent from a year ago. Soybean stocks stored on farms are estimated at 457 million bushels, down 18 percent from a year ago. Off-farm stocks, at 543 million bushels, are down 34 percent from last March. Indicated disappearance for the December 2012 - February 2013 quarter totaled 967 million bushels, down 3 percent from the same period a year earlier.
All wheat stocks totaled 1.23 billion bushels, up 3 percent from a year ago. On-farm stocks are estimated at 237 million bushels, up 9 percent from last March. Off-farm stocks, at 997 million bushels, are up 2 percent from a year ago. The December 2012 - February 2013 indicated disappearance is 436 million bushels, down 6 percent from the same period a year earlier.
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