The Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour kicked off Monday across the corn belt. The western side of the tour took off from Sioux Falls, SD, and headed for Grand Island, NE. COVID-19 has changed the way the tour runs, but Western tour leader Jeff Wilson says the tour must go on.
Last Week the WASDE report came out, and Jeff Wilson talks about the report?s findings and why the Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour is a little bit different than what the USDA NASS service does.
As the tour kicks off in South Dakota and Nebraska, scouts will be looking at crops which had a good start for planting, but then were nipped with frost and faced dry conditions ever since then.
One advantage that the Pro Farmer Crop Tour will have over last week?s WASDE report is the fact that the USDA did not factor in the destruction across the Cornbelt which was caused by a rare derecho storm. The challenge will come in measuring those damaged acres. Wilson says the world is watching what is found in Iowa.
Wilson says the grain fill stage is critical for the crops, and the weather into the next few weeks will set the stage for the year. Last year the Western Tour ran into a lot of immature crops, but Wilson does not think we will see that issue this year.
The full Iowa numbers are released on the final evening of the tour, on Thursday night, when both legs of the tour meet in Rochester, Minnesota.
