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Sorghum acres up 77 percent in Nebraska in 2021

Nebraska sorghum production jumped 77 percent in 2021 and the head of the state’s sorghum boards says that’s mostly driven by increases in commodity prices and new markets.

Nate Blum tells Brownfield “We’ve seen markets consistently as much as a $1.20 over corn.  Right now, markets typically are .15 to .20 over corn and so those markets continue to be really strong, and I think that was really important as many people were considering their planting decisions this last year.”

He says China was the biggest customer. “However, we’re seeing other countries becoming involved.  We’re seeing new markets open up domestically. Last year, the pet food market in the U.S. alone, which started using sorghum in their feed and a lot of these Chinese buyers were paying a premium for it.”

Blum says he expects increases in planted sorghum acres in 2022.

The organizations are hosting value-added producers that use sorghum to make products at Innovation Campus at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln next Wednesday.  The Nebraska Sorghum Symposium is next Thursday in Kearney.