Ontario corn producers enrolled in production insurance broke the 200bu/acre yield barrier in 2023.
In an update last week, provincial crop insurer Agricorp pegged last year’s average corn yield in the province at a hefty 202 bu/acre, well above the 10-year average of 180 bu/acre.
In its initial yield report back in January, Agricorp said the final corn yield had not yet been set, with some reports still coming in from farmers. At the time, however, Agricorp said yields were “trending above the average.”
At 53 bu/acre, the average soybean yield among producers enrolled in production insurance was unchanged from January and also above the 10-year average of 48 bu/acre.
In its final crop production report for the 2023 season back in December, Statistics Canada put the all-Ontario corn yield at 170.9 bu/acre, with the provincewide average soybean yield estimated at 51.4
According to Agricorp, about 1.6 million acres of corn and just over 2 million acres of soybeans were covered by production insurance in 2023. Total 2023 Ontario corn and soybean harvested area this past year was reported by StatsCan at 2.1 million and 2.8 million acres, respectively.
Some of the strongest corn and soybean yields were reported by crop insurance customers in Oxford County. Yields were also strong in Essex and Kent counties, along with pockets of eastern Ontario, including Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry. On the other hand, the Niagara region and Grey County were among those areas where yields were much weaker.
