Farm Bankruptcies Increased 55% in 2024

Feb 26, 2025 at 09:51 AM CST
The American Farm Bureau Federation’s Samantha Ayoub reported last week that “the U.S. Courts report that 216 farm bankruptcies were filed in 2024, up 55% from 2023. This is still 64% lower than the all-time high of 599 filings in 2019. However, 2024 is the end of a four-year downward trend in bankruptcies, which appears to mark a turning point in long-term farm financial health.” “Row crop markets have experienced sharp decreases in cash receipts for three years, with expected further declines of over 4% and 6% in corn and soybean receipts, respectively, in 2025. Cotton had a nearly 24% decrease in cash receipts in 2024 but is the only major row crop forecast to post an increase in cash receipts in 2025,” Ayoub reported. “Chapter 12 bankruptcies lag declines in farm income as farms must exhaust their ability to pay back debt before filing. It is likely that the downward trend in net farm market returns, combined with even longer-term declines in government payments in 2024 due to an outdated farm bill, drove more farmers in the Grain Belt and South to their last resort of farm bankruptcy in 2024.”

Feb 26, 2025 at 09:51 AM CST

The American Farm Bureau Federation’s Samantha Ayoub reported last week that “the U.S. Courts report that 216 farm bankruptcies were filed in 2024, up 55% from 2023. This is still 64% lower than the all-time high of 599 filings in 2019. However, 2024 is the end of a four-year downward trend in bankruptcies, which appears to mark a turning point in long-term farm financial health.”

“Row crop markets have experienced sharp decreases in cash receipts for three years, with expected further declines of over 4% and 6% in corn and soybean receipts, respectively, in 2025. Cotton had a nearly 24% decrease in cash receipts in 2024 but is the only major row crop forecast to post an increase in cash receipts in 2025,” Ayoub reported. “Chapter 12 bankruptcies lag declines in farm income as farms must exhaust their ability to pay back debt before filing. It is likely that the downward trend in net farm market returns, combined with even longer-term declines in government payments in 2024 due to an outdated farm bill, drove more farmers in the Grain Belt and South to their last resort of farm bankruptcy in 2024.”