Independent Thinkers Rethinking Corn

“Rich on Agronomy” is a monthly agronomy column from Peterson Account Manager Rich Larson.

Last fall, many growers were thinking of cutting back or dropping corn from their 2015 production plans. All of the profit models supported that line of thought. Some still do, but market movements in the futures have narrowed down that list. Some models now show more profitability on corn than soybeans. In visiting with growers and local elevators, there hasn’t been very much forward selling of the 2015 crop, so options for cropping plans are still mostly open.

I think we all know that if as many acres of soybeans get planted as are indicated now and if Brazil takes off a good crop, the market will react negatively. Demand for both crops is good–but there are many more “buts” for soybeans than for corn right now. Corn carryover stocks are predicted to be growing less than expected, mostly due to higher usage in livestock and ethanol, combined with decreasing acres in 2015.

Growers that are “big picture, independent thinkers” are rethinking their cropping plans to include more corn than they were considering last fall. There is an old saying that goes something like this: “Do the opposite of the majority, and you might make more money”. Or, “Buck the trend and make a buck”.

If you’re looking at strictly cost of production rather than profit potential on your farm, planting many more soybeans and significantly less corn is an easy button. But if planting intentions go as they were planned a month or two ago, I predict there will be many growers who will eventually wish they had planted more corn.