Corn Harvest Begins as USDA Reports 4% Progress Across Key States

Today, the USDA published the 23rd Crop Progress report of the 2025 growing season. Here’s a look at the latest corn, soybean, wheat, and oat numbers.

Corn

As of Sept. 7, 95% of the corn crop across the country’s top 18 corn-growing states had reached the dough growth stage. With that, progress is right on track with the five-year average of 95%.

USDA reported 74% of the crop across top states had reached the dent stage by Sept. 7, which is behind the five-year average by 1 percentage point.

Twenty-five percent of the crop across all states had reached maturity, level with the five-year average.

Harvest progress was reported for the first time this season, with the agency reporting 4% progress across eight states at this point. The five-year average is 3%, and last year at this time progress had reached 5%.

Here are the states that have begun harvest:

• Illinois: 2%
• Indiana: 1%
• Kansas: 2%
• Kentucky: 18%
• Missouri: 9%
• North Carolina: 44%
• Tennessee: 28%
• Texas: 69%

The agency reported the condition of the corn crop in the 18 top states as follows:

• Good/excellent: 68%
• Fair: 23%
• Poor/very poor: 9%

The percentage of corn in the good/excellent category decreased 1 point from the week prior.

Soybeans

The USDA reported 97% of the soybean crop across the top 18 soybean-growing states had reached the setting pods stage, on track with the five-year average.

Twenty-one percent of the crop across all states had reached the dropping leaves stage, 1 point behind average.

The condition of soybeans in those 18 states was as follows:

• Good/excellent: 64%
• Fair: 26%
• Poor/very poor: 10%

With that, good/excellent soybeans decreased 1 point week-over-week.

Winter Wheat

Planting of the 2026 winter wheat crop has begun in 10 of the top 18 winter wheat-growing states. Progress had reached 5% as of Sept. 7, 1 point shy of the five-year average.

Spring Wheat

In the six spring wheat-growing states, 85% of the crop had been harvested as of Sept. 7, just ahead of the five-year average of 84%.

Oats

Across the nine top oat-growing states, 94% of the crop had been harvested as of Sept. 7, 1 point behind the five-year average.