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Ag economist says high input costs making it difficult for farmers to navigate long-term goals

An ag economist says the cost of production is making it difficult to plan for the future. 

Michael Langemeier says the current ag economy is impacting how farmers think about long-term financial planning.  

“We’re so busy putting out fires, worrying about these high input costs, that we lose sight of where we want to be,” he says. “This is very important because we don’t want to do anything short-term that’s going to make that long-term goal not feasible.”

He tells Brownfield farmers should be utilizing various budgeting strategies to be more cost-effective.

“Do the calculations,” he says. “Calculate your break-even prices. Calculate your profit margins. Crop margins were already very tight, and they’re probably going to stay that way for the foreseeable future.”

Langemeier understanding production costs and working to limit unnecessary expenses can help farmers navigate ongoing economic uncertainty.

The Barometer is a nationwide measure of the health of the U.S. agricultural economy and surveys 400 agricultural producers on economic sentiment each month.

AUDIO: Michael Langemeier, Purdue’s Center for Commercial Agriculture