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First U.S. sorghum shipment to China highlights export opportunity for large crop

A western Kansas farmer says 2025 could be a record year for the sorghum industry.

Amy France, chairwoman with the National Sorghum Producers, tells Brownfield, “We’re anticipating a 23 percent increase in sorghum yields throughout the sorghum belt.”

France says timely rains across parts of the Central Plains helped the crop, including hers. “We had some incredible rains. Not often do we say we had too much moisture. I even hate to say that, but we’ve been blessed with an abundance of moisture.”

She says the larger-than-expected crop is creating storage problems for some farmers. On Thursday, Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the first shipment of sorghum was headed to China. France says if the country, the largest export market for the U.S, purchases the crop, it could help improve those issues.