According to a report from the United States Department of Agriculture November’s domestic corn production is expected to be lower than it was last month, but that doesn’t tell the full story.
There is still more corn being produced—even in down years like this—than what can be consumed.
The decrease in domestic production is compounded by foreign markets. The report points to increased grain production in Russia, Brazil, and several other countries.
Jim Benham, the State President at the Indiana Farmer’s Union, worries about what all of this means for the future of farmers and their finances.
“Is it justifiable for us to continue to have as many bankruptcies that we’re having and people that are failing and blame it on the producers when it’s probably not all their fault," he says.
Economists say farmers as a whole should produce less grain, that way there isn’t as much excess on the market which lowers per unit prices.
Farm bankruptcies increased 36 percent in 2018.
