East Central Reporter

Illinois counties topped the national rankings in corn and soybean production last year, with McLean County ranking first in the country, according to a report by The Center Square.

Rep. Adam Niemerg (R-Teutopolis) shared an article from The Center Square about the results on Facebook.

"Congratulations to Champaign County for making the Top 5 counties in corn production in the United States!" Niemerg posted.

The Center Square story attributed crop statistician Mark Schleusener who said several Illinois counties “dominated” the national rankings and he congratulated Champaign County for hitting the top five in corn production as well as other spots in Illinois.

“McLean County ranked first across the entire U.S. with nearly 71 million bushels of corn produced last year,” Schleusener said. “Additionally, Illinois had the top five counties in the country for total corn production.”  

Other counties included Iroquois, Livingston, LaSalle and Champaign counties as far as Illinois goes, which were the fourth through seventh highest. Stark County had the highest yield in the state at more than 240 bushels per acre. After that it was Woodford and Ogle counties. Nationwide Iowa was on top in 2022, with Illinois placing second, the Center Square report stated. 

The USDA reported that there were 70,700 farms in operation in 2022 and in 10,800 acres of corn and also 10,800 acres of soybeans planted.

According to the Brownfield Agricultural News, Stark County posted the highest amount in the state of Illinois at 240.6 bushel per acre. This was followed by Woodford and Ogle Counties.