At the crush plants the October and November contracts were down $1.00 to unchanged this week. Sunflower harvest has started in the Dakotas and Minnesota. In Texas, harvest continues to move along ahead of the five-year average. In the past week, producers harvested an additional 2,900 acres pushing 2025 harvested acres to about 46,180 acres. This represents 4% of this year’s projected harvested acres and is slightly ahead of last year at this same time. Traders are eagerly awaiting to see USDA’s first estimate of 2025 US harvested sunflower acres and total seed production that will be released next week. This week USDA will release its latest grain stocks report. Traders are expecting sunflower seed stocks to be down from a year ago and the five-year average after last year’s smaller crop. This report along with actual harvest reports will set the tone for nearby sunflower price direction in the near term. After recent wet and soggy weather, drier and warmer conditions are forecast in the Northern Plains for the rest of this week and much of next week as well. Conditions will be good for maturing sunflower.
ADM Enderlin, Cargill West Fargo and Colorado Mills crush plants are offering 2026 new crop cash and Act of God (AOG) High Oleic contracts. ADM is at $23.00 cash and $22.50 AOG. Cargill is at $22.90 cash and $22.40 AOG. Colorado Mills is at $23.00 AOG. Something else to consider is the oil premiums that crush plants pay on sunflowers. Sunflower is the only oilseed that pays premiums for oil content above 40%. Considering oil premiums that are offered at the crush plants on oil content above 40% at a rate of 2% price premium for each 1% of oil above 40%; this pushes a contract with 45% oil content gross return 10% higher per cwt. The AOG $22.40-$22.50 contract increases to a range of $24.65-$24.75, and the cash $22.90-$23.00 contract moves up to $25.20-$25.30.
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