9-12 IAN Bad Corn

As though things aren't tough enough for beef and dairy producers, it may get even stickier in the coming months. Idaho is growing more and more corn and that is a good thing. However, with an eye to the rest of the country, corn has started to lose some ground - according to U.S. Department of Agriculture Meteorologist Brad Rippey - because of continued hot, dry weather. Corn rated good to excellent has dropped from 61 to 59-percent and corn rated very poor to poor has increased from 13 to 14-percent. Rippey says some states have seen an even bigger increase: "We continue to watch the creeping of very poor to poor crop conditions upward in states like Iowa going from 18 to 21% very poor to poor, North Dakota, fairly marked climb to 19%." While corn is developing quickly in the heat - Rippey says that might be at the expense of some grain weight: "23% overall, the US corn crop dented by August 25, still behind the five year average of 45% and way behind last year's drought rushed crop that was 73% dented by August 25. The national numbers all way behind average and last year."