This year’s harvest equipment introductions emphasize increased capacity, improved efficiency and enhanced crop recovery across multiple categories. Leading developments include John Deere’s F8 and F9 forage harvesters delivering up to 1,020 hp with fuel-saving HarvestMotion Plus technology, and its CF18 30 corn head that matches 36-row planter widths to eliminate inefficient guess rows.
Flexible cutting technology advances with MacDon’s FD2+ mechanical flex cutterbar and Geringhoff’s 50-foot XFR50 draper featuring integrated air systems. Air-assist technology appears in multiple products, including S3 Limited’s AWS Airbar, making its U.S. debut and promising up to 4 additional bushels per acre.
Aftermarket solutions like Smaink’s stainless steel Shelburne fingers filling a patent-expired gap and Calmer’s balanced concave upgrade kit, designed for today’s high-yield corn, address long-standing needs. International manufacturers are expanding U.S. presence, notably Vence Tudo’s Brazilian Eagle corn heads, which are entering U.S. markets after testing.