U.S. Bean Acreage Could Fall 25%
WASHINGTON - Feb 18/11 - SNS -- Dry edible bean seedings in the United States could fall as much as 25% this year as high prospective returns for corn, wheat and soybeans pulls land from that class of pulse, argues USDA economist Gary Lucier in the latest Vegetables and Melons Outlook report from the Economic Research Service (ERS).
"This may be a conservative estimate given the current price relationships and historical precedence," Lucier argued. "The lowest U.S. dry bean area in the past 20 years was 1.346 million acres in 2004, which returned a crop of just 17.7 million cwt (100 pound units) -- yields were also low that year."
"Dropping to the 2004 level this spring would represent a 30% decline from a year earlier. However, given the need for increased output for some classes, a 20% decline seems more likely," Lucier concluded.
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