By Andi Anderson
It’s a big world of grains out there, and 2023 has brought its own bunch of stories. Let’s zoom into Michigan and then take a quick tour across the U.S.
Let's start with winter wheat in Michigan. A solid 83 bushels per acre. "Wait, wasn't it the same last year?" You bet! Marlo D. Johnson, the big gun from USDA’s Great Lakes Regional Office, confirms it. Michigan had its tractors and plows busy over 600,000 acres, harvesting 560,000 of those. A jump to 46.5 million bushels, which is a whopping 35% increase from 2022. Even though they had a slow start in July, they wrapped up by August end, showing off excellent crop quality.
Now, oats took a bit of a twisty route. The yield per acre rose by 5 bushels, landing at 66. But hold on, they harvested 25,000 acres, which is 17% less than in 2022. Doing the math, the oat production slid down by 10% to 1.65 million bushels.
The US. Winter wheat production climbed by 13%, reaching 1.25 billion bushels. A neat 50.6 bushels per acre. On the oat front, while the yield went up, production took a tiny dip by 1% from last year.
States like Utah witnessed record lows in areas sown, while many others like Texas, New York, and Ohio flaunted record-high yields. Especially the eastern third of the U.S. - they seemed to have the upper hand this year.
Every grain and every state has its story. Michigan’s keeping its wheat game strong and juggling its oat numbers, while the US keeps the grain game interesting.
Photo Credit: istock-rustic
Categories: Michigan, Crops, Wheat