A sprayer sat idle in a western Iowa field on May 2, 2022 as rains continued to stall farmers. (Photo by Jared Strong/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
LINCOLN, N.E. (KELO.com) – As a new Farm Bill remains stalled in the U.S. Senate, a Nebraska farm leader warned the state is experiencing its worst agricultural downturn since the farm crisis of the 1980s. Rising production costs, weak commodity prices and the lack of an updated federal safety net have left some multigenerational farms fighting to survive.
John Hansen, president of the Nebraska Farmers Union, said the financial strain is affecting operations of every size, especially those producing corn and soybeans. “A lot of operations that have been not operating for just decades but operating for generations that are in deep financial trouble and their bankers have made it clear to them that unless things change substantially, this may well be their last year,” Hansen explained.
Last month, a Senate committee added 35 amendments, including beef country of origin labeling but failed on a 10-11 vote to advance the Farm Bill. Hansen noted his union will press Nebraska’s delegation in Washington this month. Congress has until Sept. 30 to act or extend current law. The current Farm Bill was approved in 2018 and has since been extended three times. Hansen argued its income safety net has not kept pace with record production costs or commodity prices, often falling below what farmers spend to produce their crops. Hansen stressed the effects of the downturn eventually spread throughout rural Nebraska.
“When farmers go to town and they don’t buy, folks on Main Street don’t sell. And so, they start cutting back the jobs that they support,” Hansen observed. “There’s this belt-tightening that goes through the whole economy.” Hansen added while in Washington, his group will raise concerns about reductions in USDA staffing. Hansen argued losing experienced workers in research and food safety could leave farmers and consumers more vulnerable to pests, disease and extreme weather.
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