National Agricultural Statistics Service

LOUISVILLE (June 12, 2018) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its June Crop Production report, based on the Agricultural Yield survey conducted at the beginning of month. The report includes information on Kentucky’s winter wheat forecast.

“Kentucky’s winter wheat yield forecast is down one bushel from last month but is still on par with the state’s record high of 80 bushels per acre,” said David Knopf, director of the NASS Eastern Mountain Regional Office in Kentucky.

Kentucky farmers expect to harvest 24 million bushels of winter wheat during 2018. The expected crop for 2018 would be up 1 percent from the previous year. The forecast was based on crop conditions as of June 1 and decreased one percent from the May forecast. Growers expect a yield of 80 bushels per acre, up three bushels from 2017 and down one bushel from May. Farmers seeded 440,000 acres last fall with 300,000 acres to be harvested for grain. Acres for other uses totaled 140,000 acres and will be used as cover crop or cut as silage or hay.

“Weather conditions during May didn’t help the crop a whole lot, but also didn’t hurt it,” Knopf said. “Temperatures were above average and precipitation was varied. At the end of May, 73 percent of wheat rated as good to excellent, up from 62 percent at the end of April.”

Winter wheat production for the nation was forecast at 1.20 billion bushels, up one percent from the May 1 forecast and down six percent from 2017. Based on June 1 conditions, the United States yield is forecast at 48.4 bushels per acre, up 0.3 bushels from last month and down 1.8 bushels from last year. The expected area to be harvested for grain or seed totals 24.8 million acres, down two percent from last year.

To view the complete report, visit release.nass.usda.gov/reports/crop0618.pdf. For more information, call the NASS Kentucky Field Office at (800) 928-5277.