Updates
April 30, 2021: cornucopia in Iowa -- Reuters.
April 12, 2021: for investors -- two words -- Deere John.
April 12, 2021: from Breitbart --
America is China’s top supplier of corn so far in 2021, Chinese media noted Sunday, with corn prices in China at record highs.
Corn is used in China for feeding pigs — pork is the nation’s most popular meat — making it an
indispensable crop. Increased demand for corn follows not just a
devastating African swine flu outbreak that sent pork prices soaring,
but torrential floods that destroyed much of China’s 2020 crop yield and
raised concerns of food shortages in the world’s most populous nation.
Original Post
US farmers celebrate as corn exports near records. Link here.
Reuters
reports US corn exports "have blown past nearly every benchmark" as
China, the world's largest food and ag importer, appears to be ramping
up purchases of US farm goods.
What's mildly funny is how China has begun to purchase large amounts of farm goods from the US under the Biden administration.
According to official US export data Wednesday, February's corn exports recorded 6.3 million tons.
The
amount topped "2008's record for the month by 17% and is the largest
monthly volume since July 2018," said Reuters.
A few months back, December's corn exports exploded to 13-year highs.
The first-quarter outlook already suggests record volumes.
Even a caveman can "read" this graph: the graph says that under the Obama administration, things were simply incredibly awful.
By the way, this will lead to a stand-along commentary when I get caught up.
The other day I noted:
- Got corn? Corn futures rise to highest since 2013 before USDA report.
Here's the link and the story:
Chicago
corn futures climbed more than 3% on Thursday, April 8, 2021, to hit
their highest since 2013, as the market was buoyed by
smaller-than-expected US planting.
Another metric that doesn't matter (don't take that out of context).
Google search on the blog for "corn."
Back on February 13, 2013 -- note the Reuters date above -- coincidental? I think not -- Don sent me a great story. Here's the blog link with the story link "inside":
Narrow-row corn just got narrower.
Stine Seed Company planted and harvested 2,500 acres of 12-in.-row corn
in central Iowa last year. A hybrid designed for high density production
yielded 320 to 330 bu./acre on the cropland.
“(The fields) were up where we had a
little extra rain and a little extra nitrogen on it,” reports Harry
Stine, president, Stine Seed. “Most of our other yields were much lower
with a farm average of 145 bu./acre (mostly 22½-in. rows).”
The trend to 20- and 15-in.-row corn has
been around for years. But interest in even narrower rows such as 12 in.
has increased as growers seek the elusive 300 bu./acre yield mark.
That's for the "average" farmer.
David Hula isn't average.
David Hula grows 600-bushel+ corn. Link here. This was just one year ago, January 6, 2020.
Meanwhile, from the USDA just a few days ago:
Increased acreage and higher yields for corn and soybeans allowed both
crops to return to more typical production levels, according to the
2020 Crop Production Annual Summary released today by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service
(NASS).
U.S. corn growers produced 14.2 billion bushels, up 4% from 2019.
Corn yield in the United States is estimated at 172.0 bushels per acre,
4.5 bushels above the 2019 yield of 167.5 bushels per acre. Area
harvested for grain, at 82.5 million acres, is up 1% from 2019.
Soybean production for 2020 totaled 4.14 billion bushels, up 16% from
2019. With record high yields in Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi,
Missouri, New Jersey, and Tennessee, the average soybean yield is
estimated at 50.2 bushels per acre, 2.8 bushels above 2019, but 0.5
bushel below the Nov. 1 forecast.
For 2020, all cotton production is down 25% from 2019, at 15.0
million 480-pound bales. The U.S. yield is estimated at 825 pounds per
acre, up 2 pounds from last year’s yield. Harvested area, at 8.70
million acres, is down 25% from last year.
Also released today were the Winter Wheat and Canola Seedings and
Grain Stocks reports. The Winter Wheat and Canola Seedings report
provides the first indicator of this year’s winter wheat acreage.
Planted area for harvest in 2021 is estimated at 32.0 million acres, up
5% from 2020.
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Chicks
Sophia's first grade class is learning about "life cycles," from eggs to adults.
They observe the eggs ("candling the eggs") and make notes every few days in their science journals.
They now have a webcam as the chicks start to hatch. I don't suppose the webcam will be up for too many days, but there it is.
There were originally nineteen eggs. It appears two eggs did not develop (based on "candling"). The first of seventeen chicks has hatched.
