Increases in demand for corn, particularly for use in ethanol, have led to more acres in corn production in the US since 2006. Increased acres have typically come from lower yielding areas, which then impact national US corn yield. We estimate that increased acres after 2006 reduced US average corn yields by 2.2 bushels per acre, also resulting in minor reductions in trend estimates of US corn yields. The additional acres in lower yielding areas can lead to understated gains if a productivity analysis is conducted using US corn yields.
