Speculation about expected corn and soybean acres for 2018 started before production numbers for 2017 were finalized.  The big question is whether farmers will plant more acres to soybeans than to corn this year. Official records provided by USDA’s National Agricultural Statists Service (NASS) show that corn has historically been king of the acreage battle every year, except one.

In 1983, soybean acres totaled 63.8 million acres nationally while only 60.2 million corn acres were planted that year. Last year, U.S. soybean planted acreage, at 90.1 million, also made a run at the acreage crown...