Sorghum's Gaining Momentum, Farmers & Policy-Makers Say

by Dave Mowtiz (AgricultureOnline) Grain sorghum is gaining the attention of eastern Corn Belt farmers in an area dominated by corn, soybeans and wheat, reports a category winner of the National Sorghum Producers Association's yield contest.

Chris Robinson, who farmers in Union County, Kentucky, won the association's conventional-till non-irrigated contest category with a sorghum yield of 196.9 bushels per acre. Robinson spoke before the association today during the Commodity Classic being held in Anaheim, California.

"Traditionally, grain sorghum is viewed as a scavenger crop in our area. It is a crop you grow as a last resort to replace corn or soybeans that are drown or droughted out," Robinson told producers attending the conference which is part of the Commodity Classic. "But we see it as a viable crop here as it is very economical to plant. And it is more resistant to drought conditions that can visit Kentucky."

However, Robinson adds, a big problem that Kentucky farmers face when growing grain sorghum is that their local elevators discourage them from doing so. "They just don't want to handle the grain," Robinson adds. "Until more acres are grown in my area of the country, I don't see elevators wanting to readily access the crop." READ MORE