News

K-State agricultural economist Brian Briggeman and the president of the Kansas Cooperative Council, Brandi Miller, talk about the availability of loans from the Small Business Administration to agricultural producers and cooperatives under the new Paycheck Protection Loan Program, which is part of the federal coronavirus aid package...they hosted a webinar panel discussion on how producers and cooperatives can work with their lenders on obtaining these loans.

K-State agricultural economist Leah Tsoodle goes over some of the key findings of the new 2019 Pasture Leasing Arrangements in Kansas report, based on a statewide survey of landowners and tenants on the particulars of pasture lease agreements. She covers some of the trends commonly found in the state.

The director of the Farm Analyst program out of K-State, Duane Hund, talks about a slew of calls he and his team have been receiving in recent days from farmers about what to do amidst the market plunge caused by the coronavirus issue...he is advising producers to stay the course in their farming activities and management, and to work closely with financial lenders, vendors and others for the duration of this downturn.

K-State agricultural economists Robin Reid and Art Barnaby go over several important considerations on making the USDA farm program payment decision for 2019 and 2020 crop production...whether to go with Agricultural Risk Coverage or Price Loss Coverage option for individual crops; here, they'll walk through the expected general outcomes of those decisions. Reid stresses that producers who have not yet made an appointment with their local FSA office should do so now.

K-State agricultural economists Kevin Herbel and Gregg Ibendahl talk about their new analysis of Kansas crop production revenue in 2019, based on Kansas Farm Management Association data...they look each of the four main cropping enterprises in the state, concluding that this past year was generally profitable for crop producers.

K-State​ agricultural economists Allen Featherstone and Mykel Taylor talk about their new article on the state of the Kansas farm economy, entitled "Navigating Rough Waters". They discuss the factors that are most greatly influencing the economic condition of production agriculture currently...most notably, land value trends and very modest improvements in net farm income the last couple of years and their thoughts on how 2020 might shape up economically for Kansas producers.

K-State agricultural economist Robin Reid and Rich Llewelyn advise crop producers to start finalizing their decisions on which USDA farm program option they'll enroll in for 2019 and 2020 production, choosing either the Agricultural Risk Coverage or the Price Loss Coverage option. They remind about the helpful information at K-State's agmanager.info web site that producers can benefit from as they decide.

Gregg Ibendahl talks about his new analysis of the farm debt situation, using Kansas Farm Management Association data to identify trends in the extent of debt incurred by farmers currently...the findings tell him that producers need to be evaluating their debt status very carefully right now.