Soybeans gaining good root-hold as Texas cash crop

By MONETTE TAYLOR | South Central Texas Edition

Feb. 17, 2005 - When the word "crop" comes up, many think corn or cotton. But what may come as a surprise to many Texans is a rapidly-rising crop that has been planted in over 30 states ... soybeans. While many always identify Texas with cotton, cattle and oil, soybean production has taken hold and continues to gain popularity as a "cash crop."

For those of you who have heard about soybeans, but aren't too sure just what, where, why and when they showed up on the agricultural spotlight, here are some key points:

• The bush, green soybean plant is a legume, usually planted in late spring;

• With flowering and production taking place in the summer, each plant can produce 60-80 pods, with each holding three, pea-sized beans;

• A 60 pound bushel of soybeans yields about 48 pounds of meal and 11 pounds of oil.

Another interesting point is the fact that there are more soybeans grown in the United States than anywhere else in the world. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), producers harvested 2,418 billion bushels of soybeans in 2003, with half of the total value being exported as whole soybeans, soybean meal and soybean oil. Statistics also show the United States produced 34 percent of the world's soybeans in 2003.

According to history and the USDA, China grew soybeans at least 5,000 years ago, but the product didn't make it to the United States until 1804, when it was brought over by a Yankee clipper ship. The soybeans were used as "inexpensive ballast," and were dumped, once the ship arrived in the United States.

By 1829, U.S. farmers decided to grow the soybeans, mainly for soy sauce! When coffee was scarce during the Civil war, soldiers used the soybeans as "coffee berries." And, throughout the 1800s, soybeans were used as a cattle feed.

In 1904, George Washington Carver studied the soybean and found its beans provided protein and oil. By 1929, U.S. soybean production had risen to 9 million bushels. With the production, and interest, growing, William J. Morse visited China and found more than 10,000 varieties for U.S. researchers to study.

By the 1940s, and the start of World War II, processors turned to the production of soybean oil. The crops had reached 78 million bushels harvested on 5 million acres.

Much of the soybean meal became a "high protein" feed ingredient for livestock and poultry by the early 1950s, with the American Soybean Association (ASA) promoting the beans in Japan.

A surprise to many may be the fact that, today, soybeans represent the second largest cash crop; and it ranks first in value for U.S. crop exports, with ASA promoting the product in over 100 countries around the world. (Corn remained the largest crop area planted in 2003 in the United States.)

The top 10 U.S. export customers for soybean products are China, the European Union, Mexico, and Japan.

While soybean production continues to gain popularity in Texas, other states, including Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota and Missouri, planted more acreage in 2003 ... the latest statistics available. Texas planted 200,000 acres of soybeans, and averaged 28 bushels per acre. According to Dr. Joe Krausz, associate department head of Plant Pathology and Microbiology for Texas Cooperative Extension, producers should expect at least 30 bushels per acre, with the correct management and high quality seeds.

With high-quality seeds, proper weather conditions and soil temperature, and herbicide treatment, as needed, Krausz noted producers should expect a good crop. Crop rotation is advised, and he suggested that corn, sorghum, cotton or rice be planted, along with a rotation of soybeans.

While Texas statistics show soybeans as only 1 percent of the total value of principal crops in 2003, it produced $33 million in value for the state.

Uses of the soybean seem to be unlimited and growing, yearly. Human consumption ranges from baby food to batters and baking to soy sauce, soups and sweet rolls; and industrial uses range from all-purpose lubricants to alternative fuels and animal care products to wallboard, waxes and wetting agents.

While prices have been higher in earlier years, the USDA has announced that the 2005 crop national average loan rates will be at $5/per bushel for soybeans.