Crop Progress: Harvest 2021 Continues Ahead of Average

Oct 29, 2021

For the week ending Oct. 24, 2021, there were 5.9 days suitable for fieldwork, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. Topsoil moisture supplies rated 8% very short, 32% short, 58% adequate and 2% surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies rated 12% very short, 41% short, 45% adequate and 2% surplus.

Field Crops Report:

Corn condition rated 4% very poor, 7% poor, 18% fair, 44% good and 27% excellent. Corn harvested was 60%, behind 73% last year, but ahead of 47% for the five-year average.

Soybeans harvested was 88%, behind 96% last year, but ahead of 77% average.

Winter wheat condition rated 2% very poor, 9% poor, 30% fair, 51% good and 8% excellent. Winter wheat planted was 97%, equal to both last year and average. Emerged was 84%, near 82% last year and 86% average.

Sorghum mature was 96%, near 98% both last year and average. Harvested was 72%, behind 79% last year, but ahead of 54% average.

Dry edible beans harvested was 92%, near 96% last year.

Pasture and Range Report:

Pasture and range conditions rated 12% very poor, 19% poor, 53% fair, 15% good and 1% excellent.

Source : unl.edu

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.