Corn Crowds Out Beans In Iowa

Des Moines Register:

In Iowa, corn has won the battle for acres. A decade ago, Iowa’s 22 million acres were evenly divided between corn and soybeans. But this year, 14.6 million acres will be planted for corn, while soybean plantings, which were 11 million acres a decade ago, will be just 8.8 million acres this year.This year’s corn price is uncomfortably close to the $5 per bushel that farmers will spend on fertilizer, diesel fuel and rents to put in a crop this year. The squeeze could threaten the string of record profit years for Iowa farmers and maybe even chill Iowa’s much-ballyhooed farmland boom. Drought in northwest Iowa is creating worries, too.
When cash rents are approaching $500 per acre, you are working on tight margins,” noted Garrett Toay, Des Moines commodity broker. “Corn historically is more profitable than soybeans, so farmers might be reluctant to switch acres.”

$500 an acre is insane. Somebody will get burned.