The U.S. Department of Agriculture 2018 crop report for Kentucky shows both Henderson and Christian counties among the state’s leaders in production.
Henderson County led the state in soybean production with 5.4 million bushels grown on 102,400 acres.
Christian County was the leader in corn production with 12.8 million bushels grown on 72,500 acres.
But Ohio County came in strong by getting the most yield per acre for both those crops.
Ohio County farmers harvested 59.6 bushels of soybeans per acre last year, compared to Henderson County’s 53 bushels per acre.
David Knopf is regional director of the USDA Statistics Services based in Louisville.
“Ohio County also led the state in the average yield per acre for corn as well, topping 200 bushels per acre and in 2018, it was the only county that reached that level,” said Knopf.
He said about 75 percent of Kentucky’s corn and soybeans are grown west of Interstate 65.
“That area from Owensboro down through Hopkinsville, and east and west of that line, that’s where a good chunk of the corn and soybeans tend to be grown,” said Knopf.
He said that region is near the state’s poultry industry, so some of those crops are ground into feed for poultry, as well as livestock.
