Drought hurts soybean farmers

DANVILLE, Ind. (WISH) - When Danville farmer Ken Edmondson looks over his soy bean crop, he doesn't like what he sees.

The drought wiped out most of his crop.

"Some beans have been harvested. I would guess these are going to make 10-15 bushels an acre. Comparison to a normal year you would like to think you are in the 40-60 bracket," said Edmondson.

Last month agronomists from Purdue and the USDA projected Indiana soy bean yields would be down 24% this year because of the drought. But the experts added yields could increase if any rain came our way.

By the time the rain came, Edmondson was out of luck. He had planted his bean crop early, the rain came too late.

"Alot of people that planted later, they are going to have, they won't be normal yields, it will be maybe 60% of normal hopefully" said Edmondson. "It's been stressful to say the least, but the good thing is I've got crop insurance. Woe to the person that doesn't have crop insurance. This year it is going to be devastating."

Edmondson expects to harvest his soy bean crop next month. He is under contract to sell the beans to a corporate buyer. If his yields don't reach what he has promised to deliver, he has to make up the difference. That means buying beans on the market and handing them over to his buyer.

Costs can add up quickly.

"Make no mistake about it. This is not going to be a gold mine for me this crop insurance. It's to cover expenses and be able to survive for next year" said Edmondson.