(Washington D.C.) Farmers are facing a tougher economic outlook this planting season. For example, the cash corn bid at a local elevator on Monday afternoon was $4.60, compared to $6.29 one year ago. The current cash soybean price is $11.25, compared to $14.09 last year.
Todd Van Hoose, President and CEO of Farm Credit, spoke with KSOM/KS95 News at the NAFB Washington Watch event in Washington, D.C. He says this is one of those years when producers will have to sharpen their pencils.
Van Hoose says the overall leverage figure is relatively low, at around 14 percent, which is low compared to many other industries.
Van Hoose says commercial operations are carrying a good amount of debt, and he says many farm ground owners do not carry much debt at all.
Van Hoose says Farm Credit is noticing a lot of interest in agriculture from young farmers; however, it is not so much commodity-centric agriculture, it is new markets, small production, and niche sorts of things, especially on the coasts, but less so in the more traditional markets.
Speaking of the more traditional markets, the USDA released its weekly crop progress report on Monday afternoon. Nationwide, 27 percent of the corn crop is planted, five percentage points higher than one year ago, and soybean planting reached 18 percent complete, two percent ahead of the five-year average. Seven percent of the corn crop emerged as of Sunday, two points ahead of last year and three points above the five-year average of 4%.
