Farm Economy
Iowa farmland values remain strong despite lower grain prices and rising financial stress. Tight supply, local farmer demand and low debt keep land prices surprisingly resilient.
Find out how the busy farm equipment auction season is shaping up so far and why you can expect an uptick in multi-dealer and farm retirement auctions before 2025 comes to a close.
As Jed Bower takes the helm at NCGA, he is working to expand market opportunities in the U.S. and abroad, and looking for practical ways to reduce regulatory burdens on farmers.
While the Trump administration weighs an economic bailout for farmers that would use tariff income, groups like ASA continue to press for better market opportunities and a trade deal with China, in particular.
The Farm Journal September Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor makes it clear: Working capital is thinning, export markets are shaky and long-term crop margins could get ugly. But for now, one thing is still keeping its strength: Americans’ appetite for beef.
Farm Journal’s September Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor found nearly half of the ag economists surveyed say the U.S. ag economy is worse off than a month ago and will remain depressed or even worsen over the next 12 months.
With most input prices still record or near-record high, farmers in parts of the country have seen eroding balance sheets for four straight years. Now the concern is more farmers will be forced out of farming this year, unless they see some type of market or government intervention.
A growing crisis is silently unfolding in agriculture. Farmers are 3.5 times more likely to die by suicide than the general population. With mounting financial stress, that number could be on the rise this year.
Fifty-three percent of agricultural economists surveyed in the July Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor say the row crops side of agriculture is currently in a recession, which is down from the 72% who responded that way in May.
NCGA’s Krista Swanson says it would take about 226 bu. of corn to buy a ton of ammonium phosphate, which is up from the 180 bu. it took at the beginning of this year. As fertilizer costs are on the rise, corn prices are now at or below $4, and it’s creating a grim outlook for 2026.