Farmers in the United States intended to plant 95.3 million acres of corn in 2026, 3% less than the year before, and 84.7 million acres of soybean, 4% more, according to the Prospective Plantings report published on 31 March 2026 by the US Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).
The report is the first official, survey-based reading of American planting intentions for the year, drawn from returns by nearly 74,000 farm operators in the first two weeks of March. According to an analysis by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), farmers planted 98.8 million acres of corn in 2025. At its February Agricultural Outlook Forum, USDA had projected 94 million acres of corn and 85 million of soybean for 2026; the survey put corn above both that forecast and the average trade estimate, and soybean below both.
Why acres are moving from corn to soybean
AFBF pointed to tighter margins and higher fertilizer costs. Corn needs far more nitrogen than soybean, so rising fertilizer prices weigh more heavily on it. Conflict around the Persian Gulf had made fertilizer prices and supply volatile; AFBF noted that countries exposed to disruption there account for roughly 49% of global urea exports and about 30% of ammonia exports. Strong domestic demand from soybean crushers and the rotation pull after a large 2025 corn crop also favoured soybean.
The picture state by state
The retreat from corn is broad rather than local. Planting intentions are down in 37 of the 48 estimating states, with falls of 300,000 acres or more expected in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. If realised, the corn area in Nevada and Washington would be the largest on record, while Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island would post their smallest. Iowa would remain the largest corn state, at 13.1 million acres.
Soybean gains of 300,000 acres or more are expected in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin, with Wisconsin heading for a record. AFBF put the largest increase in Arkansas, at 510,000 acres.
Wheat, cotton and grain in store
All wheat area is put at 43.8 million acres, down 3%, which AFBF described as the lowest in records going back to 1919. Winter wheat stands at 32.4 million acres (down 2%), other spring wheat at 9.42 million (down 6%) and durum at 1.95 million (down 11%). All cotton is expected to total 9.64 million acres, up 4%, with Texas the largest at 5.52 million.
NASS published its quarterly Grain Stocks report the same day. Corn in store on 1 March totalled 9.02 billion bushels, 11% more than a year earlier, with on-farm stocks up 21% and off-farm stocks down 2%. Soybeans totalled 2.10 billion bushels, up 10%, and all wheat 1.30 billion bushels, up 5%.
Why it matters for Bangladesh
Bangladesh relies heavily on imports for soybean oil and feed. In March 2025 The Daily Star, citing USDA's oilseeds report on Bangladesh, reported that the country imported 2.2 million tonnes of soybeans in the 2024-25 marketing year, half of it from the United States and a third from Brazil. Local soybeans meet only 7% of demand for soymeal and edible oil, while the poultry, fish and livestock feed industry keeps growing. American corn and soybean plantings and stocks therefore matter to the country's edible oil and feed markets.
Intentions are not a harvest. Between March and planting, growers can change their minds in response to fertilizer markets, weather and prices, which is why NASS was due to publish its Acreage report on 30 June.
Photo: USDA / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Sources: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, American Farm Bureau Federation, The Daily Star
Comments
(0)