Discover Indiana’s Top 7 Most Valuable Crops

As the 8th largest farming state in the country, Indiana’s most valuable crops are incredibly impactful. There are nearly 57,000 farming operations throughout the state, and Indiana is frequently at the top of the “corn state” debate. The agriculture industry within the Hoosier state rakes in $35 billion each year.

With 11.8 million acres to harvest each season, it’s easy to understand why. In 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Indiana brought in 947.7 bushels of corn, 335.2 million bushels of soybeans, 19.4 million bushels of wheat, and 1.59 million tons of hay.

While that seems like a staggering amount from a single state, most of the numbers fall short of 2021’s haul. The USDA accumulates a huge amount of data on the agricultural industry, broken down for each state or county and generally running the numbers back to the mid to late 90s.

Indiana’s Top 10 Most Valuable Crops

Some crops on this list may come as a surprise, mostly because it’s difficult to associate them with Indiana. Others are obvious, though the numbers are staggering. Of course, they are only staggering to the uninitiated. If you spend enough time delving into the agricultural industry, the words ‘millions’ and even ‘billions’ take on a more lackluster meaning.

1. Corn

Corn makes up 31% of Indiana’s agriculture industry. The only other crop that’s in the same stratosphere is the number 2 crop on our list. It is responsible for over $3 billion of all agricultural-related sales from and in the state. It’s difficult to drive through Indiana without seeing a cornfield, especially if you are outside any of the cities. If It’s rural, it has corn.

2. Soybeans

Soybeans run a close second to corn. After soybeans, the production and sales percentages dropped significantly. With over $3 billion in sales each year, soybeans take up nearly 6 million acres of farmland throughout the state. In 2022, Indiana produced 324 million bushels of soybeans.

3. Hay

Indiana isn’t in the top five states for hay production and sales, but that doesn’t mean the state doesn’t produce a lot of it. Hay makes the third spot on the list of Indiana’s most valuable crops, with nearly $288 million in sales per year. In 2022, Indiana harvested 520,000 acres of hay and 260,000 acres of alfalfa.

4. Wheat

The fourth spot in Indiana’s most valuable crop is wheat, and Indiana produces six types of it. It’s far from being on the same level as corn and soybeans, but It’s still a large commodity in the state and as an export. Indiana produces soft red winter wheat, hard red winter wheat, hard red spring wheat, soft white wheat, hard white wheat, and Durum wheat.

5. Melons

You have to look southeast, to Florida, if you want the number one producer of melons in the country. However, Indiana holds its own in melon production, delivering $71,515,000 in sales each year, from only 7,000 acres dedicated to it. Both watermelons and standard melons are included in many of the statistical categories, especially in the USDA statistics for the state each season.

6. Pumpkins

Even though pumpkins are far down the list of Indiana’s most valuable crops, the state still came in second in terms of total pounds of pumpkins produced in 2021. Illinois beat Indiana to the punch, but that’s not bad at all for a crop that only makes the 6th spot on the list. That pumpkin you buy to carve up this year may be an Indiana pumpkin. You never know. Together, with five other states, Indiana produces around 40% of the nation’s pumpkins each year.

7. Mint

This is one of those crops that people tend not to associate with Indiana. When you think Indiana, you think corn—maybe soybeans. Mint is not on the list unless, of course, you’re a farmer in the state. As the 7th of Indiana’s most valuable crops, mint production includes peppermint and spearmint oils. The state brings in nearly $4 million a year in mint sales and exports.

Other Crops Throughout Indiana

Once you reach mint, the remaining crops in Indiana fall into other categories and are largely irrelevant in terms of the USDA’s statistics. Some pages don’t even list them at all. You have to go outside of crops to find more value coming out of Indiana’s agricultural industry.

As far as crops are concerned, Indiana also produces a notable amount of flowering plants, foliage plants, herbs, bedding plants, and cut flowers. Since most of these don’t constitute something Americans mass consume, they are only worthy of notation, rather than sales and export numbers.

Non-Crops In Indiana

According to Indiana’s numbers (ISDA), meat animals make up 15% of the sales from the state’s agricultural industry. Poultry and eggs come in second at 11%, with dairy playing rear guard action at 7%. There are roughly 3,000 pork farmers throughout Indiana, and they are responsible for $1.63 billion in sales each year.

In 2021, Indiana produced 9.5 billion eggs and, when combined with poultry sales, accounted for $1.18 billion. While meat production is the third-largest commodity in the state, eggs, and poultry make up a good share of the industry’s revenues each year as well.

Dairy falls in fifth place, in terms of size within the Indiana agriculture industry, even though it only makes up 7% of the production each year. Indiana has roughly 179,000 cows in the state, from which 4 billion pounds of milk is produced each year, across 900 dairy farms.

Summary of Indiana’s Top 7 Most Valuable Crops

The photo featured at the top of this post is © Patricia Elaine Thomas/Shutterstock.com