ATLANTA, Ind. — Keith Hoover, 72, remembers he would have rejoiced at getting 120 bushels of corn per acre when he started out as a farmer, back in 1960. Now, he’d complain about such a dismal crop.

Even with a drought going on, his farm in Tipton, Ind., currently managed by his son, Tony, is still expected to produce about 200 bushels of corn per acre and 60 bushels of soybeans this year, Hoover said. Improved technology has a lot to do with that.

Hoover was one of more than 8,500 farmers, business partners and members of the public to attend a free lunch and field show for three days last week at Beck’s Hybrids headquarters in Atlanta, Ind.

“Now we have the same problems. We need rain. But if we didn’t get rain back then, we’d get down to 70 bushels,” Hoover said.

Other farmers were not so happy about their farm’s outlook this fall, but remained positive about the products offered at Beck’s. “They stay on top of their technology. Most impressive is all the research they do, not just here (in Indiana) but on their research farms in southern Illinois,” said Kenney, Ill., farmer Clark Westen, of the business.

Beck’s reported more than a combined total of 11,500 people came last year to their annual field days events, including one-day shows in central and southern Illinois.

In central Illinois, Westen said farmers like himself are really struggling in extreme drought. “I’ve heard everything from four bushels, eight bushels per acre, to 111 bushels of corn per acre. We were in the middle of pollination when the heat hit. With 103 temperatures, everything burns up,” he said.

Even with more silage being cut than ears of corn in some cases, Westen, a loyal Beck’s customer, was making the tour last Friday to learn what is the next great thing in technology.

“We’re lucky we’ve got the technology we have nowadays. The seed we used to have would’ve been really ugly in a drought,” he said. “We’ve done our part. The seed went in so nice this spring. Now it’s up to Mother Nature and what she does to you.”

One of the most important selling points of the seed development company is it is a family business, Westen said.

“Most companies have sold out. Beck’s is different. They are expanding all the time, but they have the right approach, going state by state. They are nice people to work with. You couldn’t ask for better,” he added.

Beck’s has permanent locations in Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Ohio from which to distribute its products and service customers. The company announced in late July the first 150-acre property purchased in Kentucky, which will include a distribution center and research plots, for which the company is known, called Practical Farm Research studies.

Company President Sonny Beck is the second generation of Becks to run the family business, and his son, Scott, is vice president. According to their website at www.beckshybrids.com, Beck’s is the largest independent family-owned retail seed company in the United States.