With the 2023 harvest wrapping up in Illinois, the planning season for the 2024 crop is in full swing. According to a recent USDA report, projected 2024 corn acreage is at 91 million acres, down from 94.9 million this year, and soybean planted acreage at 87 million acres, up from 83.6 million in 2023. Rabo AgriFinance’s Stephen Nicholson says that is something to think about as we look towards 2024.
“We just had a crazy amount of corn acres this year. And I think everyone was surprised at that. But we do see soybean acres coming back because the margins for corn are either at best they’re going to be breakeven or they’re likely to be negative where the returns from soybeans are positive. So we do see that switch,” said Nicholson. “We do encourage farmers to to start thinking about this now, only because as you make as you make decisions on inputs, you’re putting money on the table. And if you think about it, you should be putting money on the table and selling that 2024 crop because you need to hedge against those inputs.”
Early USDA reports show that corn prices for 2024/25 at $4.50, down from 4.95, and 2024/25 soybeans at $11.30, down from $12.90.
Listen to the full interview between WRAM’s Kailey Foster and Rabo AgriFinance’s Stephen Nicholson here.
