OTTUMWA —
An area crops specialist has dubbed this year’s corn yields “the good, the bad and the ugly.”
Mark Carlton, Iowa State University Extension crops field specialist in Monroe County, said some fields will yield more than what was expected, whereas others will be very disappointing.
“I’ve been in a few soybean fields since [recent rainfall], and I think those rains really helped the beans enlarge and fill out the pods,” Carlton said. “But there are some beans that are turning yellow that it didn’t help.”
The corn harvest is under way, though it’s approximately two to three weeks early, Carlton said.
“The drought, the heat, everything this summer has hurt yields,” he said.
Iowa enjoyed cooler weather with more precipitation the last few weeks, though higher temperatures and drier conditions have reappeared this week.
Ottumwa and southeast Iowa saw some showers remaining from Hurricane Isaac last weekend, though the rest of the state did not enjoy the same precipitation.
Further southeast, Van Buren, Lee and Des Moines counties reported more than 1 inch of rain, according to state climatologist Harry Hillaker, with the city of Donnellson receiving the most at 2.12 inches.
In terms of soybeans, Carlton said some may start being harvested as early as next week or the week after.
Soybeans will not suffer as much as corn this year since the beans mature on day length and corn matures on heat units.
As daylight shortens, that will trigger soybeans to mature, whereas this summer’s scorching heat made corn mature far too early and has caused instances of aflatoxin, a toxin produced by the fungus Aspergillus.
“This particular fungus likes hot, dry weather,” he said. “The weather we had back in July and August favored infection.”
The fungus infects the ears through the silks shortly after pollination, ,and once it’s inside, the kernels can produce aflatoxin.
“The problem with aflatoxin is it’s a carcinogen, so you have to be very careful where you sell grain that has levels of it,” he said. “Not all corn does, but a fair portion is coming back positive.”
Cargill Eddyville won’t accept anything with aflatoxin levels of more than 10 parts per billion, Carlton said, while other places may accept higher levels since it will go toward livestock feed.
“You can feed it to fat cattle in a lot up to 300 parts per billion,” he said. “On the other hand, feeding it do dairy cows is very risky because it has basically zero tolerance in milk.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires that levels cannot exceed 20 parts per billion for all food for human consumption.
“It’s caused a lot of problems for farmers,” he said. “If aflatoxin levels are high, it’s rejected and they take it home, which is a whole other mess.”
If farmers find aflatoxin in their fields, they need to contact their insurance agent immediately, Carlton said, because an insurance adjuster has to confirm that the toxin was found in the field and not in the grain bin.
“Once it’s in the bin, it’s no longer an insurable crop,” he said.
CNHI/SE Iowa
Toxin in corn harvests causing problems for farmers
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