Washington ? The nation’s soybean supply could bounce back from current scant stocks if this year’s harvest lives up to expectations, the Agriculture Department said Wednesday.

The department projected production to rise 23 percent to almost 3 billion bushels. The result may be a record supply of soybeans, a turnaround from the lowest beginning stocks since 1977, USDA said. Poor rainfall and attacks by aphids last year cut into the crop, and combined with strong demand to push down supplies.

The department forecast soybean prices between $5.85 and $6.85 per bushel, compared with $7.65 per bushel from the last growing season. The department said, however, that the forecasts were “highly tentative” because they came early in the season.

Soybean planting is ahead of schedule, the USDA report said. As of the end of April, 12 percent of the crop had been planted, compared with 9 percent for last year, it said.

Taking advantage of good planting weather, corn farmers also were ahead of schedule in getting their crops in the ground, the department said.

The department said 63 percent of the corn crop had been planted by May 2, 16 percentage points ahead of last year and 23 points ahead of normal.

The department projected a record corn crop of 10.4 billion bushels, up 3 percent from last year’s record.

The USDA also anticipated increased export demand and domestic use. It forecast corn prices between $2.55 and $2.95, up 10 cents a bushel on the low end and 40 cents a bushel on the high end.