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Crop Insurance Decision Tool
This program calculates premiums, evaluates insurance payments, and provides historical data useful when making crop insurance decisions for multiple crops. Estimates are for crops in midwest and southeast states. Learn…
Farm Projection Tool
This program calculates per-acre budgets for different crops and a whole farm budget and includes breakevens. Projected financial statements and return sensitivities are available. The effects of farm level crop…
Planting Decision Model
With this program, the user can: 1) estimate the costs of planting corn and soybeans by planting date, 2) estimate the net returns from replanting, 3) prevented planting payments, and…
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Wind and Solar Leases in Foreign-Held U.S. Agricultural Land
Final marketing year average (MYA) prices were recently released by the USDA for nearly all eligible commodities, and the Farm Service Agency (FSA) has finalized the payments for most commodities from the Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss (PLC) programs for the 2025 crop year. Overall, payment rates were substantial and widespread across most of the US for corn, soybeans and wheat, averaging $62, $29 and $47 per base acre, respectively.
2025 Final ARC/PLC Payments
Revision Note on October 14, 2026: Average payment rates and aggregate payment estimates were revised since the original publishing of this article to adjust for the use of county-level payment…
Rural Broadband Infrastructure and Its Implications for Households and Agriculture
Survey results in this article show that although many rural households now have access to broadband service, the existing infrastructure often falls short of meeting evolving household and business needs. Agriculture has distinct broadband needs that extend beyond residential service requirements, and both must be addressed as rural communities continue to develop. Reliable, high-quality broadband is increasingly important to the competitiveness of production agriculture.
Agricultural Lending by Commercial Banks: 2026 Second Quarter
Agricultural loan balances at U.S. commercial banks increased in the second quarter of 2026, with gains in both farm real estate and non-real estate loans. At agricultural banks, farm loan…
Conservation & Risk, Part 5: Examining a Risk-Payment Gap for Nitrogen Management
Agricultural conservation policies include assistance for nutrient management. To the extent that this assistance is intended to encourage farmers to reduce application rates for nutrients, such as nitrogen, the policy presents another variation on the conservation-risk challenges examined in this series. This article examines a case study to illustrate the potential costs and risks from reduced nitrogen application alongside the financial assistance available through EQIP.
Enough Room for the Harvest? Grain Storage Pressure in the Corn Belt
US grain storage capacity can in aggregate hold this year’s carry-in stocks and expected harvest, but potential storage demand exceeds capacity in ten of thirteen Corn Belt states. Historically, grain movement during the harvest period relieves this pressure by December, so a 2026 storage crunch is unlikely. Stagnant capacity growth, however, means future bumper crops could strain the US grain handling and transportation system.