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USDA economist thinks more acreage will come out of the Conservation Reserve Program.

October 18, 2007

1 Min Read

Testifying before the House Agriculture Committee this week, USDA Chief Economist Keith Collins said there are good reasons for some producers to take some land out of CRP.

"Most of the land in CRP is in wheat country," says Collins. "And the kind of wheat prices we are looking at right now, $8.50 a bushel for December delivery, which is extraordinary. I think that kind of a wheat price would encourage people who don't have extremely environmentally sensitive land to exit the CRP and go back into wheat production."

Collins says he doesn't expect the wheat price to stay at $8.50, but in this $5 to $6 range, it is going to be very attractive for an awful lot of land that is in the CRP. While Collins does see some land being brought back into production, much will remain in the program.

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