No Grain Left Behind

The study found that actual harvest losses for corn (4.7%) and soybeans (4.5%) significantly exceed industry goals (1% and 3% respectively). These losses are primarily driven by combine settings and operator error, with smaller farms using less sophisticated equipment experiencing the highest losses. The report argues that reducing these losses could significantly decrease the pressure to convert natural prairies to cropland in the Northern Great Plains.

• Measured corn harvest losses averaged 4.7%, which is 3.7% higher than the 1% loss level encouraged by extension agents. When scaled to the national level based on 2019 production, this overage represents a loss of 503 million bushels of corn valued at $2.07 billion.
• Measured soybean harvest losses averaged 4.5%, exceeding the accepted industry loss of 3% by 1.5%. This overage is estimated to result in a national loss of $0.53 billion.
• Corn losses are highly concentrated among a minority of farmers; 31.3% of corn farmers are responsible for 74.3% of the total loss. Similarly, 27% of the highest-loss soybean farms account for 44.4% of total soybean losses.
• Technological sophistication of the combine has a more significant impact on reducing corn losses than operator experience, although operators with over 30 years of experience also show lower loss rates.
• For soybeans, row spacing significantly affects harvest efficiency; fields planted at 15-inch row spacing experienced a loss rate of 2.81%, which is roughly half the 5.75% loss rate seen in fields with 30-inch spacing.
• The total national land area associated with corn and soy loss rates is approximately 8 million acres. This is roughly 16 times the amount of land converted to cropland annually in the Northern Great Plains (NGP).
• Corn farmers prefer selling to ethanol plants over grain elevators because ethanol plants allow for a higher moisture content (17%) before docking prices, compared to 15.5% at grain elevators.
• The report identifies a lack of protection for prairie lands compared to wetlands; while the Clean Water Act and Swampbuster program protect wetlands, the Grassland Reserve Program was repealed in 2014, leaving prairies more susceptible to conversion.

APA

WWF International (2022). No Grain Left Behind. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/182/86p3hcgb56_No_Grain_Left_Behind_Technical_Report_final2.pdf

Chicago

WWF International. No Grain Left Behind. 2022. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/182/86p3hcgb56_No_Grain_Left_Behind_Technical_Report_final2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=WWF International |title=No Grain Left Behind |date=July 2022 |url=https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/182/86p3hcgb56_No_Grain_Left_Behind_Technical_Report_final2.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wwfinternational2022grain, author = {{WWF International}}, title = {{No Grain Left Behind}}, institution = {WWF International}, year = {2022}, month = jul, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/182/86p3hcgb56_No_Grain_Left_Behind_Technical_Report_final2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }