Crop Production Summaries. At the end of each harvest season, the US Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Survey undertakes a County Agricultural Production Survey (CAPS) targeting all of the farms in each of the 44 participating states. Through mail-surveys and follow-up mail surveys or phone interviews, crop producers provide information that is used to generate state-wide and eventually county-specific crop production statistics.
This county-level data is used by the USDA's Risk Management Agency (RMA) to determine when crop loss insurance or commodity support program payments are to be made to participating farmers.
2014 Illinois Crop Production Summary confirms record corn harvest. In 2014, Illinois corn producers harvested grain on an estimated 11.75 million acres, producing an estimated 2.35 billion bushels, 2.5 million more than in 2013. Fewer acres (50,000 fewer) were harvested in 2014 than in 2013, but 2014 yields were 22 bushels per acre higher than in 2013, averaging 200 bushels per acre. The 2014 per-acre yield estimate surpassed the previous record yield estimate of 180 bushels per acre set in 2004 and was the highest yield since record-keeping began 148 year ago.
Illinois harvested fewer acres of corn grain than Indiana, but had a higher estimated per acre yield than any neighboring state (Table).
2014 Illinois Crop Production Summary also confirmed record soybean harvest. In 2014, Illinois soybean producers harvested 9.78 million acres, an estimated 300,000 more acres than in 2013. The estimated soybean crop in Illinois was 547,680,000 bushels, with an average yield of 56 bushels per-acre. Estimated per acre yields were the highest since record-keeping began 90 years earlier beating the previous yield record (51.5 bu/A) set in 2010 by 4.5 bushels.
Illinois farmers grew more acres of soybeans than any neighboring state and were tied with Indiana for highest per acre yields (Table).
Table. Corn and Soybean 2014 Crop Production Estimates (USDA-NASS).
| State | Corn (grain) | Soybean | ||
| Harvested acres | Production (bu/A) | Harvested acres | Production (bu/A) | |
| Iowa | 5,770,000 | 178 | 9,820,000 | 51.5 |
| Illinois | 11,750,000 | 200 | 9,780,000 | 56.0 |
| Indiana | 13,300,000 | 188 | 5,490,000 | 56.0 |
| Kentucky | 1,430,000 | 158 | 1,750,000 | 48.0 |
| Missouri | 3,380,000 | 186 | 5,600,000 | 46.5 |
| Wisconsin | 3,110,000 | 156 | 1,790,000 | 44.0 |
Stay tuned for the release of the county-specific 2014 crop production summary, which will occur on February 19, 2015.