DES MOINES, Iowa — Corn for grain production in Iowa for 2021 was estimated at 2.55 billion bushels, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service – Crop Production 2021 Summary. Current year production was up 12 percent from the previous year’s 2.28 billion bushels. Iowa’s corn for grain yield was estimated at 205.0 bushels per acre, setting a new state record. Area harvested for grain was estimated at 12.5 million acres, 450,000 acres below 2020. Corn planted for all purposes in 2021 was estimated at 12.9 million acres.
Corn for silage production was estimated at 7.14 million tons, up 34 percent from 2020. The silage yield estimate of 21.0 tons per acre was up 0.5 ton per acre from 2020. Producers harvested 340,000 acres of corn for silage, up 31 percent from 2020.
Soybean production was estimated at 622 million bushels in 2021. This was up 23 percent from last year’s 506 million bushels. The Iowa soybean crop yielded 62.0 bushels per acre in 2021. The harvested acreage of 10.0 million was up 660,000 acres from 2020. Soybean planted acreage, at 10.1 million, was up 650,000 acres from 2020.
All hay production for the state was estimated at 4.13 million tons, up 12 percent from the 3.70 million tons produced in 2020. Producers averaged 3.28 tons per acre, up 0.09 ton per acre from 2020. All hay harvested acres were estimated at 1.26 million acres, up 100,000 acres from 2020.
Alfalfa and alfalfa mixtures for hay production was estimated at 3.19 million tons, up 10 percent from 2020. Producers averaged 3.50 tons per acre, unchanged from 2020. Harvested acres were up 80,000 from last year, to 910,000 acres. Iowa producers seeded 65,000 acres of alfalfa and alfalfa mixtures in 2021, down 48 percent from 2020.
Other hay production was estimated at 945,000 tons, up 19 percent from 2020. Producers averaged 2.70 tons per acre, up 0.30 ton from the 2020 yield. Harvested acres of other hay, at 350,000, were up 20,000 acres from 2020.
Nationally, corn for grain production in the United States was estimated at 15.1 billion bushels, up 7 percent from the 2020 estimate. The average yield in the United States was estimated at a record high 177.0 bushels per acre, 5.6 bushels above the 2020 yield of 171.4 bushels per acre. Estimated yields in 2021 were up from the previous year across most of the Eastern Corn Belt, Northeast, and most of the Southeast. Record yields were estimated in Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Washington, and Wisconsin. Corn planted area, at 93.4 million acres, was up 3 percent from the 2020 estimate. Area harvested for grain was estimated at 85.4 million acres, up 4 percent from the 2020 estimate.
National soybean production in 2021 totaled a record 4.44 billion bushels, up 5 percent from 2020. The average yield was estimated at 51.4 bushels per acre, 0.4 bushel above 2020. Planted area for the Nation, at 87.2 million acres, was up 5 percent from the 2020 planted acreage. Soybean growers harvested 86.3 million acres, up 5 percent from 2020. Record high yields occurred in Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
— USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service