USDA’s latest crop progress report, out Monday afternoon and covering the week through June 21, held some new data points for traders to consider – namely, the fact that some southern state corn has already reached the silking stage. Also worth noting this past week is corn and soybean quality ratings held steady while winter wheat ratings degraded a point lower, bucking analyst expectations.
Corn quality held steady this past week, with 68% of the crop still rated in good-to-excellent condition. That also aligned with analyst expectations. Another 26% of the crop is rated fair, with the remaining 6% rated poor or very poor – also unchanged from last week.
Physiologically, nearly all (97%) of the crop is now emerged, up from 94% a week earlier. That’s identical to both 2025’s pace and the prior five-year average. Nationally, 5% of the crop is now silking, driven primarily by southern states like Texas (67%), North Carolina (45%) and Tennessee (44%). That puts this season ahead of 2025’s pace of 4% and the prior five-year average of 3%.
Soybean quality ratings also held steady last week, with 66% of the crop still in good-to-excellent condition through Sunday. Another 28% of the crop is rated fair (unchanged from last week), with the remaining 6% rated poor or very poor (also unchanged from last week).
Physiologically, emergence has reached 93%, up from 88% a week ago. That’s ahead of 2025’s pace of 89% and the prior five-year average of 90%. And 9% of the crop is now blooming, the first week USDA has reported on this category. That’s ahead of 2025’s pace of 7% and the prior five-year average of 6%.
Winter wheat quality ratings tilted a point lower last week, with 26% of the crop now in good-to-excellent condition. Analysts were not expecting to see any changes in today’s report. Another 28% of the crop is rated fair (unchanged from last week), with the remaining 46% rated poor or very poor (up one point from last week).
Harvest progress improved from 25% completion a week ago up to 40% through June 21. That’s well ahead of 2025’s pace of 18% and the prior five-year average of 24%. Oklahoma (95%), Arkansas (80%), Texas (77%) and North Carolina (71%) are leading the way so far among the top 18 production states.
Click here for additional data from today’s report, including a state-by-state look at topsoil and subsoil moisture, days suitable for fieldwork and more.