Farmers in the top wheat state of North Dakota will not get all their intended wheat, corn and canola acres seeded this spring due to heavy rains and flooding, an executive of a US wheat group said on Friday. "No question the increased intentions on wheat, corn and canola will not be met in North Dakota this year," Jim Peterson with the North Dakota Wheat Commission told Reuters Global Ags Forum.
"Sunflowers and soybeans will be the biggest winners in North Dakota," as alternative crops to plant given their shorter growing season, he added. "If a producer has cattle - oats or a hay crop could also work." Millers, exporters, livestock producers are all keeping a close on North Dakota given the big planting delays and USDA's optimistic outlook for a spike in crop seedings, especially corn now forecast up 500,000 acres (202,400 hectares) in North Dakota from 2010.
The slow start to the growing season could ultimately mean a smaller-than-expected harvest in a year when the world is counting on a large US harvest amid snug grain stocks. "I don't want to speculate on numbers since it varies by farmers but have heard as much as 10 to 15 percent of the crop acres may not get planted statewide," said Peterson adding that last year roughly 20 million crop acres were seeded in North Dakota.
The state is known for its high-protein wheat, which is highly sought for its flour yields and to blend with lower-protein wheats to meet customer contracts. North Dakota also grows many specialty crops - barley, oats, field peas and sunflowers - and is big corn and soybean producer.
Farmers like to have wheat and corn in the ground by mid-May in southern North Dakota but will plant into late May in a year like 2011, Peterson said. Further north it is not unusual to have some planting through June 10. "Yield and quality risk are big concerns with late May and early June planted crops unless the growing season compensates and we have a late fall," he said.
The deadline to decide whether to plant or take an insurance payout is May 31 in southern North Dakota and June 5 in the north. Dry weather this week allowed farmers to plant wheat and corn but the pace lags, Peterson said. Typically 90 percent of the spring wheat crop is seeded by late May. Nationwide just 36 percent was planted as of Sunday, leaving 9.2 million acres to go. North Dakota is the farthest behind, with just 15 percent spring wheat seeded. "We may hit 25 to 30 percent by next Monday, but that would be the most," said Peterson.
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