With greater-than-expected improvement this past week, the condition of the 2025 US winter wheat crop is now better than a year ago.
Monday’s USDA crop progress report pegged the nationwide winter wheat crop at 49% good to excellent as of Sunday. That is up a major 5 points from the previous week and 1 point above this time last year.
With recent much-needed moisture across large portions of the central Plains and the Midwest, the winter wheat crop has come a long way since just the end of October, when the USDA’s initial condition rating came in at just 38% good to excellent – the second lowest in records going back to 1986.
Today’s 5-point improvement in the condition rating also easily topped pre-report trade expectations for a 2-point gain.
In the top production state of Kansas, the condition of the winter wheat crop improved 2 points on the week to 49% good to excellent as of Sunday - now 11 points above the late October rating. At 37% good to excellent, the condition of the Oklahoma crop improved 9 points from the previous and is 16 points above late October. The Soft Red crop in Michigan was rated 74% good to excellent as of Sunday, up from 72% a week earlier and 61% in October.
On the other hand, the Ohio crop came in at 59% good to excellent as of Sunday, a fall of 6 points on the week and down from the initial rating of 71% good to excellent.
Across the country, 94% of the 2025 winter wheat crop was planted as of Sunday, up 3 points from the previous week and 2 points behind the five-year average.
An estimated 84% of the US crop had emerged as of Sunday, up 8 points from a week earlier and on par with the average.
In Oklahoma, where planting and emergence were negatively impacted by the earlier dry conditions, the crop was 90% in the ground as of Sunday, up from 79% a week earlier but still 6 points behind the state average. Just 75% of the Oklahoma crop had emerged as of Sunday, compared to 63% a week earlier and 87% on average.
The Michigan crop was 96% emerged, up 4 points on the week and well ahead of 88% on average, while 94% of the Ohio crop was up, compared to 86% the previous week and 92% on average.
