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Ag bankers concerned over ag economy
The senior vice president of agricultural and rural banking policy with the American Bankers Association says the organization is still concerned about the ag economy.
Ed Elfmann tells Brownfield, “When I say we’re very nervous, that’s a nice way of saying we’re pretty terrified of where this could go.” He says, “We saw it coming in about January, February of last year because when you come in and do loan renewals, we see who’s having an easy renewal, who’s not.”
He says many farmers are operating below profitability this year.
“As we get into what we’re paying attention to and what we’re watching is farm debt at commercial banks continues to increase.” He says, “At the same time debt is going up, net farm incomes are decreasing.”
Elfmann says aid payments granted to farmers through the American Relief Act of 2025 should help narrow some of the gap. He says those payments are required to be delivered by mid-March.
Elfmann was a guest speaker during a recent webinar hosted by the Illinois Soybean Association.
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