FRANKENMUTH, Mich. — Michigan dry bean growers are on track for one of their best years. A summary of the statewide crop production report recently released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service’s Great Lakes Regional Office projects yields of dry edible beans at 2,000 pounds per acre, up 100 from last year.

That’s notably higher than the national average of 1,784 pounds per acre. With planted acres up sharply from 2013, this year’s production is estimated to total 4.14 million cwt., or 210,322 tons – a 20 percent increase from last year.

Joe Cramer, executive director of the Michigan Bean Commission, said farmers are reporting good yields and quality with harvest about 70 percent completed. He said some lower yields are being reported, but "most are in the range of 20 to 30 bags per acre" – or 2,000-3,000 pounds per acre.

Many of the state’s bean growers were ahead of schedule with planting, finishing in late June. "We had a great growing season," he said. "The beans went in in great shape, and they were never stressed. They always seemed to get a good drink of water when they needed it."

Nathan Clarke raises a variety of row crops in Midland and Isabella counties, including 650 acres of black beans and 150 acres of cranberry beans. "We’ve got some dry beans that were hurt early on with water, but the ones we planted later look pretty decent," he said.

About 70 percent of the state’s beans are in a four-county area in Michigan’s Thumb region, "and that area just thrived until white mold showed up," Cramer said. The onset of white mold "has taken the maximum potential" away from this year’s crop, he added, and farmers are reporting "a wide range of yields."

"I think when everything’s said and done, we’re going to have a better than average crop with great quality," he said.

Michigan is a top producer of dry beans nationwide, ranking No. 1 for black beans, cranberry and small red beans, and No. 2 for navy beans. Recent pressure in the marketplace has depleted much of the state’s bean stocks.

"We came into this crop with the lowest stocks we’ve had on record," Cramer said. "This is an all-time low."

According to the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, commercial elevators in Michigan held 408,000 cwt. of dry beans in storage as of Aug. 31.

The quantity on hand included 185,000 cwt. of navy beans; 131,000 of black beans; 71,000 of small red beans; and 21,000 of all other classes. Stocks account for all beans in commercial off-farm storage and include a small portion of non-Michigan grown products.

Depleted stocks, Cramer said, "is the result of a combination of factors. Part of it is the result of a poor crop in Argentina a couple of years ago – they just haven’t recovered yet from that.

"It took a combination of production and quality problems around the globe that gave buyers reason to come to Michigan. Another way that we got to ship more beans than normal is that the oil boom in North Dakota has tied up railroad cars, so the buyers who have beans bought in North Dakota are struggling to get them shipped. This created an opportunity for Michigan growers."

With a strong crop, Cramer said prices are struggling a little. "This year, everybody seems to have had a pretty decent crop. So, the combination of decreasing commodity prices like corn, soybeans and wheat, combined with good dry bean yields, have kind of fixed our supply-demand ratio. We’re back in a scenario where at least the market believes we have more beans than we need globally, and that’s putting some pressure on the market. It’s kind of normal to have some harvest-time pressure on the market.

"There’s a long way to go before we have another bean crop, and who knows what will happen in the market," he added.

With more than 2,300 registered dry bean growers in the state, the Michigan Bean Commission continues to fund research projects to fight white mold, increase yields and support the state’s growers.