farm income
Farm income falls but not land values … yet
Low interest rates and the comparatively small amount of available farmland are combining with the healthy balance sheets of many farmers to limit the decline in land values, says an economist from the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank.
Dairy losses in Southwest blizzard could reach 40,000 head
The year-end blizzard in west Texas and eastern New Mexico killed at least 35,000 dairy cows, says the New York Times, adding, "many other animals developed frostbite and could still die. In West Texas, about 10 percent of the adult herd was lost."
Biggest food and farming stories of 2015 will roll into next year
Looking back on 2015, editors at FERN listed more a dozen newsworthy stories from the year that could have lasting effects. Here's a look at them, starting with half a dozen top-tier developments, including the FDA's approval of the first genetically engineered animal.
Iowa farmland value down 13 percent in two years
Farmland values fell 3.9 percent in Iowa this year, to an average $7,633 an acre, according to an annual survey by Iowa State University. It was the second year in a row of decline in the No. 1 corn state.
USDA: Slow growth, low commodity prices in coming years
Corn, wheat and soybean prices soared to record season-average prices during the 2012 drought and plummeted in following years under the weight of mammoth harvests. The USDA says low prices will continue for years, a reflection of slow U.S. and world economic growth and large food supplies.
Grain-farm income to be lowest in at least a decade
Average net income on Illinois grain farms is projected at $20,000, dramatically lower than the $104,000 average last year. "At current projections of commodity prices, net incomes in 2016 likely will be low as well," writes U-Illinois economist Gary Schnitkey at farmdoc daily.
Drive to renew tax ‘extenders’ stretches into final weeks
Lawmakers are "headed for another last-minute, end-of-the-year renewal" of five-dozen tax breaks that expired at the end of 2014, reports Agri-Pulse, which quotes House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy as saying, "In these situations, it's always coming down to the last week to see what mix we're able to get."
Farm income estimate shrinks 7 percent in three months
Weaker commodity prices across the board are pulling down farm income, the government said in lowering its forecast of net cash income 7 percent from its Aug. 25 estimate. The USDA now expects net cash farm income - a measure of solvency - to be $93 billion this year.
Dour farm and ranch outlook in Midwest and Plains
Farm income and agricultural land values are headed downward in the final three months of the year, bankers said in surveys by the Kansas City, Chicago and St Louis Federal Reserve Banks, which cover most of the Midwest and the Plains. The Dallas Federal Reserve said lenders in its district in the southern Plains also expect land values to slip in the final quarter of the year.
A collaborative CSA in Detroit
For growers and consumers, community supported agriculture is an attractive model, says Civil Eats — subscribers get a weekly allotment of fresh produce and farmers have an assured source of income. "But the boxes can be inconsistent" because they depend on what's in season at the farm, writes Chris Hardman.
Farmers borrow larger amounts of money to pay expenses
Across the country, farmers and ranchers are relying more and more on loans to pay their operating expenses, says a quarterly report on agricultural lending. Farm banks issued $88 billion in non-real estate loans during July, August and September, the highest third-quarter total since 1997 when adjusted for inflation.
Uncertainty over ethanol mandate hurts farm income
U.S. farm income is taking a hit due in part to EPA proposals to relax the federal mandate to mix ethanol into gasoline, said the National Farmers Union and the National Corn Growers Association.
Farm income under pressure into 2016, says CoBank
Bumper crops, the strong dollar and slower growth in China will combine to hold down U.S. farm income for the rest of this year and into 2016, says a CoBank report.
As crop prices decline, losses loom for farmers
Growers in the Midwest are headed for the third year of season-average corn prices below $4 a bushel. Given the cost of planting, cultivating and harvesting a crop, "This … implies 2016 would be the third year of losses if costs are not lowered," says economist Gary Schnitkey of U-Illinois.
Debt burden rises as farmers seek more short-term loans
"Weaker farm income and depressed crop prices have forced operators to burn through working capital and increase their usage of operating loan lines," says the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank.
Land-rental rates are falling, but remain high
It took years for land-rental rates to rise during the agricultural boom, and now they are coming down much slower than commodity prices, which peaked in 2012, writes economist Gary Schnitkey of U-Illinois.
Lowest corn and soy returns to operator and land in years
Farm Belt farmers are headed for the lowest returns in years for operator and land from their corn and soybean crops, says economist Gary Schnitkey of U-Illinois at farmdoc daily.
The boom is over, as farmer income plunges for second consecutive year
Farmers and ranchers are pocketing billions of dollars less from sales of their crops and livestock while expenses continue to rise, the government said, forecasting a 26-percent drop in net cash farm income from its peak in 2013.
House defeats Trump-backed government funding bill
One day after President-elect Donald Trump shot down a stopgap government funding bill, the House defeated a Trump-backed bill written by Republicans to keep the government running until March 14. The GOP bill included $31 billion to buffer the impact in rural America of natural disasters and lower farm income.