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Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will join Clinton Griffiths for a virtual live town-hall Sept. 2 at 2 p.m. CDT. Farmers and ranchers will ask about the most pressing issues and opportunities they face.

Pro Farmer estimates the U.S. corn crop at 15.116 billion bu. with an average yield of 177.0 bu. per acre. We estimate the U.S. soybean crop at 4.436 billion bu. on a national average yield of 51.2 bu. per acre.

Scouts saw drought damage instead of derecho devastation in eastern and north-central portions of Iowa on the Pro Farmer Crop Tour this year. Minnesota was much the same, with fields showing clear signs of stress.

Drought dominated headlines in western Iowa last year during the Pro Farmer Crop Tour, and even as drought continues to be the talk of Iowa this year, fields in some portions of the state produced a different tone.

Fields sprouted the possibiity of big bushels on Tuesday. In Nebraska, scouts saw dryness, but also big potential for soybeans this year. And Indiana's crops also showed potential records in areas of the state.

As scouts set out on the 2021 Pro Farmer Crop Tour Monday they got a soggy start, a good sign for soybeans in August. While Ohio did not disappoint, South Dakota showed scars from the drought with a mature crop.

Drought conditions continue to plague portions of the Western Corn Belt, but in the East, it's a much different story with Ohio farmers potentially sitting on an above average crop. 

Crop scouts weave their way across the Corn Belt as the 2021 Pro Farmer Crop tour kicks off. In the West, scouts will start in the drought-stressed state of South Dakota. The eastern leg starts in Columbus, Ohio.