The Illinois Soybean Quality Survey looks at the protein and oil content of soybeans. (Photo courtesy Illinois Soybean Association)
By Carrie Muehling
BLOOMINGTON – Illinois soybean growers started the Illinois Soybean Quality Survey in 2012 to learn more about the protein and oil content of their product.
The goal was to establish a baseline for the state’s soybean content and then compare that to foreign competitors. While soybean farmers are paid on yield, once a soybean leaves the farm end users are only interested in the quality of the product, including protein and oil content.
The first two years of the survey collected between 500 and 600 samples each year, primarily at grain elevators. Last year the survey moved closer to the farmer and collected at county level also. The 2014 data includes 1,200 samples from 98 counties in Illinois.
The survey has found there are a number of variables impacting soybean quality. The average protein concentration was highest in 2014, while the average oil concentration was highest in 2013. Areas in Illinois with the highest and lowest protein and oil concentration were not the same each year. Varying factors include geography, planting date, soil fertility, and soybean variety.
Covert said there is a perception of a negative relationship between yield and protein, but data shows that doesn’t have to be true. USDA data shows soybean yields in Illinois averaged 56 bushels per acre in 2014 and 43 bushels per acre in 2012. But the average protein level was almost one percent higher in 2014 than in 2012.
Weather will always be a factor, but Covert believes If farmers will carefully choose seed variety, they can grow high yielding soybeans that also have a high protein and oil content.
The full report from the 2014 Illinois Soybean Quality Survey will be available mid-April at www.ilsoy.org.
Carrie Muehling can be reached at [email protected].
