Iowa yield checks so far indicate a better crop than last year.

Led by record corn and soybean yields in Iowa, Illinois and Indiana, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) last week said U.S. farmers will harvest a record soybean crop and the second-largest corn crop of all time.

While conditions around Iowa are variable, Iowa State University field agronomist Meghan Anderson said the USDA projections back up what she’s seeing in Polk County, where yield checks indicate a better crop than last year despite unevenness within individual fields. 

“Despite what felt like a...