USDA: Many Crops Continue Strong Developments

USDA's weekly crop progress reports continue to show many crops developing well ahead of the 5-year averages, especially corn and soybeans.  Right now, USDA has trained, crop-evaluation experts surveying thousands of fields, with the data to be entered into the USDA's first survey-based crop production forecast of the season.

"Certainly since we are a little bit further ahead, they're gonna be taking counts and measurements maybe a little bit more advanced than what you have in a year when you're not ahead," said Lance Honig.

USDA's also on the phones, surveying thousands of farmers for their take on expected yields. So far, those results are in line with other surveys that show many producers are seeing crop development well ahead of normal.

"And whether it's an objective yield count measurement work that we're doing, or even when you reach out to the farmers, the further along the crop is, maybe that gives you just a little better idea of what those yields are going to be looking like."

That could give the August crop production forecast a better chance of being closer to what the actual harvest will be, or as Honig calls it--

"A little bit of a jump start on what those final yields are gonna come in at."

The USDA Crop Report comes out August 10^th.

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