Dec. 23: As the holidays approach, harvest is wrapping up across the Corn Belt. The final U.S. Department of Agriculture Crop Progress report for the 2009 growing season indicated that 95 percent of the corn harvest is complete nationally. To complete what has become the slowest harvest in 35 years, farmers continued to work well into December. Despite dogged determination, some areas of the Northern Corn Belt are still well behind the five-year harvest progress average at this time.

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During the week ending December 18, the national corn harvest moved only three percentage points closer to completion, a 3.2 percent increase from the previous week. Nationwide, the corn harvest is now roughly 95 percent complete. This lags behind the five-year average of 100 percent at this time in December.

“This is the most challenging harvest I can remember,” said National Corn Growers Association President Darrin Ihnen, a farmer in Hurley, S.D. “Fortunately, yields are high. Unfortunately, so is moisture. Harvest may be slow, but through hard work the U.S. grower always gets the crop in. This year though, it may take until spring.”

At this point, only Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas report a completed harvest in state. North Dakota showed the most progress as farmers moved the needle eight percentage points from 60 to 68 percent complete.

“In North Dakota, we have been blessed with decent harvest weather over the past week and farmers have taken advantage of it running their combines long hours,” said NCGA Corn First Vice President Bart Schott of Kulm, N.D. “Moisture levels of more than 30 percent are still common in the northern part of the state and many farmers, including myself, will be harvesting corn next spring.”