A new crop report released by the USDA shows record numbers for Delaware soybean and corn harvests in 2014.
This marks the second year in a row that corn yield and production both set records in Delaware. Corn yield for 2014 was 200 bushels per acre and production totaled at 33,600,000 bushels.
In 2013, the corn yield was 166 bushels per acre and production totaled at nearly 29 million bushels. The numbers for corn apply to the type of corn that’s used as a grain in animal feed and various products, but not sweet corn.
Soybean yield for 2014 turned out to be a record 48 bushels per acre while production totaled at nearly 8,800,000 bushels. The record for highest soybean production was 9 million bushels in the year 2000.
Department of Agriculture Secretary Ed Kee calls the numbers outstanding.
"This record year is the direct result of the combination of excellent weather, modern applied science drawn from years of research, and our farmers' hard work," said Kee in a statement. "This is great news for our grain growers and the poultry industry, which uses the majority of Delaware's grain for feed. We hope this trend will continue."