Michigan August 1 Crop Forecast

Aug 13, 2015

Michigan growers believe that they will have higher yields for both corn and soybeans compared to 2014, as well as a record wheat yield, according to the USDA, NASS, Great Lakes Regional Office. This report is based on current conditions, as of August 1, 2 015. Some highlights of the Crop Production Report follow:

Michigan corn producers expect a yield of 165 bushels per acre, up 4 bushels from the previous year. Production is projected to decrease, though, due to fewer acres harvested.
Soybean production in the State is expected to total 96.1 million bushels, up from a year earlier. The yield is forecast at 46 bushels per acre, a 3 bushel increase from 2014.
Sugarbeet growers estimate a yield of 30.0 tons per acre, up 0.7 tons from last year.
Winter wheat production in Michigan is expected to total 40.0 million bushels. The yield is forecast at 80 bushels, which would be a state record.
Producers of dry beans are expecting their crop to yield 1,900 pounds per acre, down 40 pounds from last year. Production is expected to decline slightly from 2014.

Source:usda.gov

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.