Market Matters Blog           12/08 10:12

   US Grains and BioProducts Council: US Corn Crop Shows High Grain Quality

   USDA's November estimate of the 2025 corn crop average yield was a record, 
while the U.S. Grain and BioProducts Council reported the crop is of high 
quality.

Mary Kennedy
DTN Basis Analyst

   U.S. farmers produced a high-quality corn crop this year, according to the 
U.S. Grains and BioProducts Council's (USGBC) 15th annual corn quality survey. 
The USGBC announced the survey's findings in its 2025-26 Corn Harvest Quality 
Report, released in November.

   The council's report provided information about the quality of the U.S. corn 
crop to assist industry leaders in making well-informed buying decisions. The 
council said that through trade, it is committed to the furtherance of global 
food security and mutual economic benefit.

   "Generally favorable weather conditions allowed for the 2025 crop to be 
planted at a pace similar to the average pace of the previous five crops," the 
council's report stated. "Following planting, warm conditions promoted timely 
emergence and strong early growth despite dry weather prior to pollination. The 
crop experienced warm and wet conditions during pollination, followed by 
progressively cooler and drier conditions during early grain-fill, which 
limited kernel size and weight. Much of the Eastern Corn Belt had exceptionally 
warm and dry weather during dry-down and harvest while pockets of rain in 
September delayed progress in the Western Corn Belt."

   In addition to the record size of the 2025 corn crop, the council reported 
the United States produced a corn crop with high grain quality that will enable 
it to account for an estimated 38.4% of global corn exports during the 
marketing year. The average aggregate quality of the representative samples 
tested for USGBC 2025-26 Corn Harvest Quality Report (2025/2026 Harvest Report) 
was better than the grade factor requirements for U.S. No. 1 grade. The report 
also showed 87.1% of the samples met the grade factor requirements for U.S. No. 
1 grade, and 97.8% met the grade factor requirements for U.S. No. 2. Here is a 
link to the entire report: 
https://grains.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-26-USGBC-Corn-Harvest-Quality
-Report_Final.pdf.

   FARMERS, ELEVATORS WEIGH IN

   I asked farmers and elevator managers from different areas to tell me about 
their harvest, quality, yields, storage and anything else they wanted to share. 
Here are their responses.

   ROSLYN, SOUTH DAKOTA

   "We finished up corn harvest here Nov. 14 with 10 days to spare before the 
snow and cold hit," said Ryan Wagner, Wagner Farms Roslyn, South Dakota. "The 
weather really cooperated this year, so once we got rolling, we had very few 
weather delays. We started corn Oct. 9 on an early maturating hybrid with 
moisture around 23%, and by the time we finished, it was down to the 16% to 17% 
range on full-season hybrids. We are set up to dry corn so moisture in that 20% 
range is ideal to minimize header loss.

   "A cold snap in late May really set the crop back, and it had a tough time 
recovering with development seemingly behind all summer relative to GDUs 
accumulated. But a warm September and a late killing frost allowed all the corn 
to reach maturity and fill out nicely, so test weight and grain quality wasn't 
a concern like we thought it might be midsummer. Despite losing a few acres to 
drown-out, due to some big rain events, yields were very good. It won't quite 
be a record but looks like it will for sure be Top 5 and maybe even No. 2 
all-time on our farm after the bumper crop we had in 2016. Pretty much everyone 
I talk to in the area says about the same thing, and all the corn in ground 
piles locally proves it!"

   MANTORVILLE, MINNESOTA

   "Our corn yields were very good, although the test weight was a little off 
because we had a hot, dry stretch in September that finished our crop too 
fast," said Andy Buckwalter, Mantorville, Minnesota. "We were fortunate to miss 
the heavy corn disease pressure. Overall, very pleased with the corn crop."

   EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA

   "Corn harvest in our area went good," said Darrin Schmidt, eastern North 
Dakota. "Yields were excellent with the large majority of fields coming in at 
or above APH on our farm and from talking with friends and neighbors. Test 
weight seemed to be slightly better or more consistent than previous years, wet 
averaging in that 56-57 range, which could be variety induced. Everything was 
between 18-22 moisture that was coming off the field -- so right in the sweet 
spot for us. Our local elevator lost its grain dryer to a fire, so that slowed 
us down a bit for storage issues; but having our own dryer helped a lot."

   CLOVERDALE, OHIO

   "After a rollercoaster of a weather season (wet spring, extremely dry 
finish) we were pleased with our corn yields," said Cody Etter, Cloverdale, 
Ohio. "Yields came in as expected, near APH. While we saw great variability in 
yields and moisture within fields based on water-holding capacity, it ended up 
as an average crop. We had no disaster fields, and no records. All things 
considered, with 0.3 inch in August and very little in September, finishing in 
a D3 drought, we couldn't ask for much more.

   "One thing of note, and I'm still unsure what to make of it, we had zero 
lines at harvest. Dump hours were long throughout harvest on both soybeans and 
corn. With basis warming during harvest, and especially since harvest, I can't 
help but wonder if we were spared by some localized rainfall at the end of 
July, while many other areas missed out. I have a feeling we won't know the 
whole story until next August and September."

   MARQUETTE, NEBRASKA

   "Overall, for my 2025 crop year, yields turned out to be expected," said 
Cale Carlson, Marquette, Nebraska. "Some of my expenses were higher in some 
areas but a little bit lower on areas, like irrigation, given the amount of 
rainfall we saw. I found my niche markets like non-GMO white corn worked out 
well for a little bit of profitability, but still struggling, finding 
profitability and growing commercial, yellow corn or soybeans.

   "Yellow corn harvest took a little bit longer, but that's just because I 
planted so much of my non-GMO white corn and was a little bit longer to 
harvest, but I had really good plant health and standability. It just takes a 
little bit longer drying it, storing it and handling it gently at my bin site. 
Disease pressure did creep into my area, but I felt really good and confident 
with a fungicide program we had set in place early and ready to go. Very glad I 
sprayed everything, and very glad I irrigated late into the season to keep a 
good moisture profile. I think that helped with plant health and, ultimately, 
yields; the corn dried down nicely throughout the end of September and October, 
so very minimal drying cost."

   WARREN, ILLINOIS

   "A lot of variability in areas," said Garrett J. Toay, Warren, Illinois. 
"Ultimately, I think the tassel wrap issues weren't as big of a deal as 
everyone thought. Southern rust was an issue. In northern Illinois, we had guys 
who had all-time-record yields, and we got a little. Further west, where 
southern rust was an issue, yields were knocked 30-40 bpa. I personally picked 
some hybrids that were hitting 400 bpa on the monitor; never have seen that in 
12 years of farming before. Overall, I think U.S. corn yield is 180- to 
184-type levels. I don't think they're sub-180, but there's adequate corn 
around, it feels like. Beans were average at best."

   EAST GRAND FORKS, MINNESOTA

   "The corn crop for the region seemed to come in very strong for many with an 
over-average ending results," said Matthew Krueger, East Grand Forks, 
Minnesota. "There are always pockets you'll have of areas with lower yields, 
and that was mainly driven by heavier rains or hail that occurred in the 
summer. We saw that on a few fields that received 8 inches of rain in a 
seven-day period that just got waterlogged essentially. Funny how, though, a 
handful of fields that run 15%-20% below average hurts your farm average harder 
than you realize even when you have majority of your fields running 5%-10% 
above average. Personally, we saw heavy corn with test weights as high as 59-60 
that we harvested around 17%-18%. But talking with an elevator, they saw more 
20%-plus corn this fall than they had in the past but also confirmed test 
weights not being an issue and remaining strong even at those levels of 
moisture.

   "Diseases were a little more evident for some this year, nothing that had 
significant impact on yield, but it does raise the question of how long until 
the northern regions begin to battle some diseases like Goss's, Anthracnose, 
and even some ear diseases (smut) as we continue to see corn acres become more 
common. Some diseases come due to weather-related events like wind and hail."

   Krueger added: "We have bagged our corn for over five years now; last year 
or two there may have been another grower here and there that did it, but this 
year, we saw at least seven new growers start bagging. Not due to any loss of 
bins, but I think just due to storing their other crops and still wanting to 
store their corn. It will be interesting to see what growers think of it 
through the winter/spring and how it is managed. Snowfall can raise some 
challenges with it as well depending on when you want to haul the corn back out 
from the bags."

   ONIDA, SOUTH DAKOTA

   "This harvest was a grinder that I haven't experienced since 2014," said 
Kevin R. Kjorsvik, general manager Oahe Grain Corp. "Just long. Really good 
yields and a lot of corn was planted out here, so it was going to be a grinder 
anyway. However, September rains and cool temperatures set the crop back and 
any long-day corn was slow to dry down. Most waited for it to get down to 
16%-17%, but those ideas didn't hold true the last couple of weeks in November. 
Hit with reality that winter is coming and they were going to lose their help, 
farmers finally kicked it into gear. Not everything got done, though, and there 
is still some 18%- to 19%-moisture corn sitting in the fields. A lot of ground 
piles and bags in farmers' hands currently. From what I hear from travelers 
across the state indicate, the crop was huge and other areas are sitting in the 
same situation whether it be farmers or elevators. Yields are phenomenal but 
slightly down from last year's record yields. Beans were a record yield with 
the crop running 50-55 bushels an acre."

   Kjorsvik added: "I think elevators are worried about being able to pick this 
wet corn up in a timely manner. If they aren't worried about that, they should 
be worried about FOB South Dakota rail values sucking. We didn't pile anything, 
so no worries on my end. I think farmers in our area produced themselves out of 
a loss, but profit per hour worked will suck. With the extra time combining and 
hauling a big crop, much less the extra time if they will need to pick up 
bags/piles, they probably are questioning if it was worth it."

   Mary Kennedy can be reached at mary.kennedy@dtn.com

   Follow her on social platform X @MaryCKenn




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