North Dakota Soybean Yields Tempered by Cool Spring

Milo Braaten, left, and Jim Thompson, members of the North Dakota Soybean Council. (Photo by Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – Cool weather at planting is expected to limit yields on North Dakota’s soybean crop.

North Dakota’s soybean crop is expected to hit 36 bushels per acre compared to a national projection of 53.6 bushels per acre.

The North Dakota Soybean Council provided an update on the crop Wednesday while hosting a trade delegation for China, typically a huge market for North Dakota soybeans.

“This spring, we were very cold, so you push back the planting dates. Anytime you push back planting dates, your chances of a real big yield kind of go away,” said Milo Braaten, who farms west of Portland in eastern North Dakota.

Because of its cooler climate, North Dakota soybeans yields are often lower than states farther south. Yields are typically highest in southeast North Dakota but drop off to the west and north.