In October, corn prices were hovering around $4.20 a bushel, with soybean values near $10, down 50% and 43%, respectively, from their 2022 highs. Those figures are each about 10% under estimated price forecasts set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture earlier this year. The precipitous drop in value has likely blown holes in budgets and may have farmers thinking hard about how to market the 2024 crop, which is expected to be a bin-buster.
Producers will also need to calculate how to manage farm operations with less income, even as costs for seed and fertilizer remain elevated and cash rents are high. Economists at the University of Illinois and Ohio State University say farmers may need to brace for a multi-year period of lower incomes.
