October 2, 2006

USDA sees higher US wheat production, yield

The US Department of Agriculture on Friday (Sep 29) raised its forecast for US wheat production and said average yields are higher than expected.

The new wheat production forecast is at odds with general expectations from analysts who believed the USDA would likely lower its prediction.

Total US wheat production is now expected to reach 1.812 billion bushels, up from the USDA's last forecast--released on Sep 12--that pegged production at 1.801 billion bushels.

Despite the short-term increase, US wheat production is still significantly lower than it was a year ago, the USDA said in its Small Grains report.

The USDA said 2005 US wheat production was 2.104 billion bushels and farmers were getting average yields of 42 bushels per acre.

But for 2006, the USDA is predicting the average wheat yield at 38.7 bushels per acre. That's down from last year, but up from the Sep 12 forecast of 38.3.