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Inflationary pressures still limiting farm decisions

An ag economist says inflation will continue to be a major stressor in the year ahead.

Todd Davis is with the Indiana Farm Bureau.

“While the inflation rate is slowing down, we still have the cumulative effect of all those costs that have been baked into the system and that is stressing out farmers and consumers alike,” he shares.

He tells Brownfield some farmers have been pleasantly surprised by yields this year, but high input costs will likely continue to squeeze profitability.

“I’m a big believer in farmers just crunching the numbers and using this time to stress test their budgets and their financial statements to understand what would happen if I had a smaller revenue, higher cost, higher interest rates, how would I handle that?” he suggests.

Davis says while there is talk interest rates might come down in 2024, he’s recommending a wait-and-see approach before making major investments.

Brownfield interviewed Davis during the recent Indiana Farm Bureau Annual Meeting.