By Michele F. Mihaljevich

Indiana Correspondent

ATLANTA, Ind. – Worldwide demand for corn and soybeans is strong, but the world’s supply may not be keeping up with that demand, according to Matt Bennett, a grain marketing specialist with Beck’s.

“What matters is we’re not growing enough corn to satisfy demand on a world basis,” Bennett explained during a presentation at Becknology Days in late August. “We’re drawing down world stocks. How strong is world demand for corn? The strongest ever.

“Demand is so strong that you can’t pull production down too far here.”

The demand for soybeans is also outpacing supply, he said.

“We are not building world stocks (of soybeans),” Bennett said. “(South America had) better have one heck of a big crop or what’s going to happen? World stocks are going to plummet because usage is so strong.

“Where’s all this usage coming from? We’re crushing beans like it’s going out of style in the U.S. for renewable diesel.”

The USDA estimated in its August World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report that corn world ending stocks would drop 24.2 percent in 2026/27 from last year, Bennett said. Soybean world ending stocks could fall 0.9 percent this marketing year from last.

U.S. farmers planted 309.6 million acres in principal crops this year, down from 311.5 million in 2025, according to the USDA’s June 30 report. Corn acreage is down 2.1 percent this year, soybean acres are up 6.8 percent and all wheat acreage fell 5.9 percent, the USDA said.

Bennett said the dollar has come down from its highs, though it is trying to establish a little bit of an uptrend. He asked audience members if they’d prefer a weak or strong dollar.

“What does the grower want?” Bennett asked. The answer, he noted, is “a weak dollar because it’s cheaper for everyone to buy products out on the world market off of the U.S. Clearly our exports have been phenomenal, especially with corn, this past year.

“And soybeans for new crop were vastly ahead of a year ago. Why? How many beans had China bought going into harvest a year ago? Zero. They said you guys can stick your attitude where the sun don’t shine, we’re not buying any beans.”

This year is different, he said, because the U.S. and China reached an agreement for China to purchase soybeans from the U.S.

In October 2025, China agreed to buy 25 million metric tons of U.S. beans annually in 2026, 2027 and 2028.

“The (U.S.) government needs to remember once again that if we use our product domestically, it can help literally the entire economy,” he said. “Yes, the ag economy, but what does it do for you on energy prices? It keeps you stable.”

It has been difficult for farmers to consistently make money because costs have continued to go up, Bennett said.

He asked those in his audience if they would like to see $7 corn this year. To those who raised their hands, he said, “We need to talk afterward.”

“The worst thing that could happen to us is $7 corn. Period,” Bennett explained. “Up front, it’s going to feel like a lot of fun, it’s going to be great. What’s going to happen when you get $7 corn? Everything else is going to go up and then it will be a game of musical chairs. Whenever the corn market goes down, what’s going to happen with our input costs? They’ll go down too, right?”

Those costs won’t go down when the market does, he said.