U.S. farmers plant more corn, less soybeans in 2023

Total U.S. wheat acres estimated up about 8.5 per cent

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Published: June 30, 2023

,

File photo of the facade of the U.S. Department of Agriculture building in Washington, D.C. (Camrocker/iStock/Getty Images)

MarketsFarm — Farmers in the United States seeded more corn and less soybeans than earlier intentions in 2023, according to updated acreage data Friday from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Total corn plantings in the country were estimated by USDA at 94.1 million acres, which was a million acres above the top end of trade estimates and well above the 88.6 million acres seeded in 2022. The corn plantings would mark the third-highest acreage base to the crop since 1944.

The increase in corn area came at the expense of soybeans, which saw area fall to 83.5 million acres from 87.5 million a year ago. Average trade guesses had been for similar planted area on the year.

Read Also

Animal health worker Eduardo Lugo treats the wounds of a cow as Chihuahua ranchers intensify surveillance for the screwworm after the U.S. suspended cattle imports following the detection of the parasite in southern Mexico, at the Chihuahua Regional Livestock Union, in Nuevo Palomas, Mexico May 16, 2025. Photo: Reuters/Jose Luis Gonzalez

U.S. again halts cattle imports from Mexico over flesh-eating screwworms

The flesh-eating livestock pest New World screwworm has advanced closer to the U.S. border with Mexico, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said, prompting Washington to block imports of Mexican cattle just days after it allowed them to resume at a port of entry in Arizona.

Meanwhile, quarterly stocks of both crops came in below average trade estimates and the year ago level, at 4.106 billion bushels for corn and 796 million for soybeans.

The wheat numbers saw planted area increase to 49.6 million acres, from 45.7 million in 2022. Of that total, spring wheat at 11.1 million acres was up by about 500,000 from an earlier estimate and compares with the 10.8 million acres of spring wheat seeded in the U.S. in 2022.

Quarterly wheat stocks in the country came in at 580 million bushels, which was at the low end of trade expectations and well off the 698 million bushels of wheat on hand in the country at June 1, 2022.

— Phil Franz-Warkentin is an associate editor/analyst with MarketsFarm in Winnipeg.

About the author

Phil Franz-Warkentin

Phil Franz-Warkentin

Editor - Daily News

Phil Franz-Warkentin grew up on an acreage in southern Manitoba and has reported on agriculture for over 20 years. Based in Winnipeg, his writing has appeared in publications across Canada and internationally. Phil is a trusted voice on the Prairie radio waves providing daily futures market updates. In his spare time, Phil enjoys playing music and making art.

explore

Stories from our other publications