With the recent excessive rainfall on a maturing soybean crop, many growers are reporting soybeans sprouting in the pod. In addition, lodging and plant disease such as Sclerotinia (white mold) may result from the excess moisture. Please consult with your merchandisers and grain dealers to be aware of discounting for damage. For example, sprouted seed is counted as damage at grading. Some processors may elect to reject the load if the sample is in excess of 5% damage. While rejection may not automatically be the result, be aware of discounting for heavy damage and talk to your grain buyer about what you are seeing in your crop.
For the week ending October 5, USDA is reporting crop ratings for soybean with 56% of responses in the categories from Fair to Very Poor. This is a big shift from the mostly positive outlook in recent weeks, although this year’s crop had been poorly rated in the height of the summer months due to heat and drought. Again, consider the marketing situation of your crop and be aware of discount schedules for things like damage, moisture and weathering. And be aware, discount schedules may change IF things like protein and oil content of the bean are adversely affected by the rain.
