Every fall the same argument: "why is my basis so wide?" Here’s one honest piece of the answer —
how much grain your state grows against how much it can physically hold.
2025: the U.S. grew grain equal to 94% of its total storage capacity · 14 of 39 states grew MORE than they can store · tightest: South Carolina 3.46×, Maryland 1.90×, Delaware 1.64× · data refreshed 2026-07-18
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Every state: grain grown vs total bin space — tap a state
overflowingtightmanageableroom to spareno data
94%
of U.S. storage, grown in 2025
production ÷ total capacity
14
states over 1.0×
grew more than they can store
3.46×
tightest: South Carolina
logistics state — see honesty note
0.94×
Iowa
biggest grain state, 2025
Every state, ranked by crunch
Grain = corn + soybeans + wheat + sorghum + barley + oats, final 2025 production, million bushels.
Capacity = on-farm + off-farm, Dec 1. Click a state name for its 25-year history; click a column to sort.
State
Crunch 2025
vs 10-yr avg
Grain, M bu
Capacity, M bu
On-farm share
3.46×
+0.43
66
19
0%
1.90×
+0.04
105
55
0%
1.64×
+0.02
44
27
0%
1.61×
+0.47
194
120
0%
1.42×
-0.37
16
11
0%
1.30×
+0.24
260
200
65%
1.19×
-0.12
224
188
61%
1.18×
+0.24
1,417
1,200
62%
1.15×
+0.15
990
860
66%
1.10×
+0.12
2,398
2,170
54%
1.10×
-0.61
9
8
0%
1.08×
+0.16
1,740
1,605
24%
1.02×
+0.18
12
12
0%
1.00×
+0.07
1,411
1,410
61%
0.96×
+0.04
3,056
3,170
47%
0.95×
+0.11
742
780
48%
0.95×
-0.21
339
357
74%
0.94×
+0.21
1,311
1,390
67%
0.94×
+0.29
106
113
53%
0.94×
+0.07
3,372
3,590
57%
0.92×
+0.06
499
540
56%
0.92×
+0.03
207
225
51%
0.91×
+0.12
2,161
2,370
65%
0.90×
-0.01
67
74
49%
0.90×
+0.11
268
298
54%
0.89×
+0.01
86
97
59%
0.86×
+0.00
891
1,035
54%
0.76×
+0.14
11
15
0%
0.75×
+0.06
193
256
51%
0.70×
+0.17
72
102
39%
0.67×
-0.13
146
218
78%
0.65×
+0.09
200
310
21%
0.62×
+0.07
480
780
22%
0.57×
-0.00
225
395
78%
0.55×
-0.26
10
18
0%
0.55×
+0.01
289
530
44%
0.54×
+0.04
171
315
21%
0.49×
-0.18
84
171
73%
0.25×
-0.02
21
85
0%
Honest limits. Capacity is measured December 1 — after harvest — and grain moves
all year, so a 1.1× state isn’t drowning; it’s shipping. Small-capacity states (South Carolina,
Maryland, Wyoming) post extreme ratios because their crop railroads straight out — that’s logistics, not crisis.
The number matters most where the bushels are. Years USDA didn’t publish cleanly are excluded, and any value that
looks contaminated is dropped rather than displayed.
Do something with it: a tight state at harvest is a
wide-basis state — check your region against its own normal on Basis vs Normal ·
the answer to a crunch is often your own bin: size one with the grain bin calculator
and price the carry with the pre-sell calculator.
Questions people actually ask
What does a storage crunch ratio over 1.0 mean?
The state produced more bushels of grain (corn, soybeans, wheat, sorghum, barley and oats combined) than its total on-farm plus off-farm storage capacity. That grain has to move — by rail, barge or truck — or sit in piles. Either way, somebody pays, and it usually shows up as weaker harvest basis.
Why does storage capacity matter for my basis?
When bins are full, elevators bid less because taking your grain costs them space they don't have. A state running near or over 1.0x heading into harvest is a state where basis has to do the rationing. See how your region's basis compares to its own normal on the AGSIST basis page.
What counts as storage capacity here?
USDA NASS measures both on-farm capacity (your bins) and off-farm capacity (licensed elevators, terminals, processors) as of December 1 each year. This page adds them together and shows the on-farm share separately, because who owns the space decides who earns the carry.
Why do small states show extreme ratios?
A state like South Carolina grows meaningful grain but has very little commercial storage — much of its crop moves straight to ports or feed mills. High ratios there describe logistics, not crisis. The ratio matters most where the acres are: the Corn Belt, the Plains.
Whose numbers are these?
USDA NASS Quick Stats: Grain Stocks capacity (first of December) and annual Crop Production final figures. Forecast rows are excluded; only final YEAR production is used. Sources at the bottom of the page.
Source: USDA NASS Quick Stats — Grain Stocks storage capacity
(on-farm and off-farm, first of December) and annual Crop Production (final YEAR figures only; forecasts excluded).
Small combined-states rows are in national totals but never ranked. Data refreshed 2026-07-18.
AGSIST is free and sells nothing on this page.