More on hybrid seed shortfall

As we noted a couple of days ago, certain corn hybrid seed are in short supply. Jason Kelley, Arkansas Extension Corn Specialist, said today that one seed corn rep said that there were 7 times as many orders for one of its hybrids as the actual inventory of that seed.

“One producer said that he ordered 1,600 acres of one Roundup Ready hybrid, but 6 weeks later he was told that none of his order could be filled,” said Kelley. “Other producers who placed their orders a week or two earlier were told that maybe half of their orders would be filled for certain hybrids.”

Erick Larson, Mississippi Extension Corn Specialist, said the shortfall is understandable in terms of Southern hybrids, since corn acreage has been declining over the years in both Mississippi and other states in the region. Higher costs for fuel, nitrogen and other nutrients put corn at a disadvantage compared to other crops.

“Now, with strong corn prices, there’s far more demand for seed than anyone might have anticipated a year ago,” he noted. “Our record year for corn acreage was 1996 when Mississippi had 630,000 acres. For 2007, we could have a crop that size or perhaps larger.”

Availability is also somewhat uneven across different areas because distributors might allocate seed supplies to their better locations and limit inventories at other locations. Adding to the higher demand in the Deep South is the fact that some hybrid seed production areas in the Midwest were hit by drought and prolonged, above-average heat that reduced seed yields.