Despite drought conditions in southern Iowa and other challenges throughout the state, high soybean yields are predicted this fall for producers.

Local farmer and Iowa Soybean Association communications representative Rob Stout shares what he’s seen in the area, “Well of course we haven’t gotten out in the field yet and it’s a little hard to tell but I’ve been out scouting looking around it looks like our corn yields will be really good. Soybeans we’ve had a lot of rain here just in the last 10 days and looks like we’ve got another forecast for a couple days here. So August and September rains make soybean yields really good so I would hope that we can have some really good soybean yields, so hopefully a good little extra yield will partially make up for not as a good a price.”

The ISA reports the final soybean crop predictions by ProFarmer Midwest Crop Tour now exceed the previous record forecast from the U.S. Department of Agriculture report on August 1st, with 63.5 bushels per acre in Iowa. Greater yield may ease some fears from area farmers as the U.S. faces an ongoing trade conflict with China. U.S. soybean farmers are receiving $3.6 billion of a $12 billion aid package from the USDA, which will pay $1.65 per bushel on 50% of farmers’ 2018 production. Stout comments on the aid, “We appreciate it, it’s helpful but it doesn’t anywhere as near cover the $2 loss in the market we’ve seen. So we definitely need markets and the markets back that we’ve lost and new markets in the long term.”

More than 50 Iowa ag industry officials had a roundtable discussion with USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue, Governor Kim Reynolds, and Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig in Ames last week in which Perdue compared the ongoing trade conflict to a weight loss program, saying, “You hate going through it and it’s not fun, but you feel better after it’s done.”