ST. LOUIS, MO (NewsDakota.com) – John Quandt of Oakes, North Dakota has taken home some top state honors in the National Corn Yield Contest in St. Louis, Missouri.

The National Corn Yield Contest began in 1965 with 20 entries from 3 states. The highest overall yield was 218.9 bushels per acre, while the national yield average was in the mid-60 bushel-per-acre range

Quandt placed second in the state in the no-till/strip-till irrigated class with a yield of 271.27 bushels per acre. The hybrid used in the winning field was Pioneer P0157AM™. Quandt also placed third in the Irrigated class with a yield of 264.66 bushels per acre. They hybrid he used was Curry 720-02AM.

“John Quandt was one of 426 state winners nationwide,” the organization states. “The 2017 contest participation included 7,269 entries from 46 states. Of the state winners, 18 growers – three from each of six classes – were named national winners, representing eight states.”

The average yield among national winners was more than 386 bushels per acre – greater than the projected 2017 U.S. average of 175.4 bushels per acre. Five of the national winners recorded yields of 400 bushels or more per acre and include a new world record of 542.2740 bushels per acre achieved by David Hula of Charles City, VA.

“Our nation’s corn farmers stepped up to the plate and hit a homerun yet again in 2017,” said NCGA President Kevin Skunes, a corn grower from Arthur, North Dakota.

“As a whole, the data contestants share from their fields enables all our countries’ farmers as they work to feed and fuel the world in an increasingly sustainable way,” Skunes continued. “they are preserving both America’s family farms and the nation’s natural resources for many generations to come.”

The National Corn Growers Association represents more than 40,000 members, 49 affiliated state corn grower and checkoff organizations, and hundreds of thousands of growers who contribute to state checkoff programs.