Connect on Social Media
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…
Recent Features
Visit farmdoc Sections
Crop Insurance Decision Tool
Farm Projection Tool
Index Numbers of Illinois Farmland Values
2019 Budgets For All Regions
Latest farmdoc Daily Articles
Under Pressure: The Size and Timing of the Harvest Low in Corn Basis
US corn harvest-time corn basis bottoms in mid-October, coinciding with the peak of harvest activity. Average basis at the harvest-time low is about 11 cents below late-November levels. State-level lows average 16 cents, deepest in Missouri, Indiana and Illinois, and more loosely track local harvest progress. Avoiding sales at the harvest will realize gains on average over time, though futures moves and other costs may swamp basis gains.
The 2027 Margin Coverage Option (MCO) Decision
The Margin Coverage Option (MCO) is an area-based crop insurance endorsement that provides protection against operating margin shortfalls, which can be driven by revenue decreases, cost increases or a combination…
Illinois Cash Rents in 2026 and Outlook for 2027
The average cash rent for Illinois farmland saw a small decline for the second year in a row in 2026. Higher corn and soybean prices have improved the return outlook for both 2026 and 2027 compared to the previous three crop years, and producers are expected to receive relatively large payment from the 2025 ARC/PLC programs in the next month. However, expected returns remain below longer-term averages. This suggests farmland rental rates will likely remain relatively stable heading into 2027.
Changing Public Perceptions of AI and Data Center Development: Results from the Gardner Food and Agricultural Policy Survey
The social, economic, and environmental impacts of data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) are increasingly important issues facing communities across the country. Although most existing data centers are in urban…
Conservation & Risk, Part 4: Approaching the Nitrogen Application Question
From fertilizer costs to nutrients lost, the issues and challenges of nitrogen continue for row crop agriculture. They are magnified in the moment by the conflict in Iran and the…