Condition ratings for winter wheat declined from late November to late December in most U.S. Plains states, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Jan. 2, reflecting dry conditions in some areas.
The United States is the world’s second-largest wheat exporter after Russia.
The USDA issued its last national winter wheat ratings of the season on Nov. 25, reporting 52 per cent of the U.S. crop in good to excellent condition as of Nov. 24. Over the winter, USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service releases monthly reports for select states. The government will resume weekly U.S. crop progress reports in April.
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Crop ratings fell the most in Montana, the No. 5 winter wheat producer last year. The USDA rated 55 per cent of Montana’s winter wheat in good to excellent condition at the end of December, down from 68 per cent by Nov. 24. In Oklahoma, the No. 3 producer, 40 per cent of the winter wheat was rated good to excellent, down from 52 per cent in late November.
Topsoil and subsoil moisture conditions in Oklahoma were rated mostly adequate to short, the USDA said.
Wheat ratings also declined in top producer Kansas, where more than half the state was abnormally dry until storms brought welcome precipitation in the last few days of December, according to the latest weekly U.S. Drought Monitor.
Farmers in the Plains grow hard red winter wheat, the largest U.S. wheat class, which is milled into flour for bread. Ratings improved in Illinois and Kentucky, where farmers grow soft red winter wheat used to make cookies and snack foods. The USDA rated 48 per cent of the Illinois wheat crop as good to excellent by Dec. 31, up from 45 per cent in late November.
Year-ago state crop ratings were unavailable due to a government shutdown that began in late December 2018 and lasted through most of January 2019.
