Hundreds of struggling Arkansas farmers are pleading with the federal government to provide emergency funding amid a farm economy crisis. Almost everything that could go wrong for Arkansas farmers went wrong this year. A dismal global market and plunging commodity prices mean there’s little hope of breaking even, even as input costs soar because of inflation and tariffs—on top of bad weather earlier in the year. Inputs costs have gone up, fertilizer has gone up, commodity prices have gotten worse.
“After a horrible year last year where most farmers in Arkansas lost money, this year is going to be worse,” said Derek Haigwood, a farmer from Independence and Jackson County.
The “Big, Beautiful Bill” provided a much-needed update to safety net subsidies for farmers, they won’t see those federal dollars until late next year. By then, some have projected that as many as one-fourth—or even one-third—of Arkansas farmers could face bankruptcy or be forced out of business.
Arkansas Ag Extension projects the state-average net returns per acre for some principal crops in the state as follows: minus $85.02 for soybeans; minus $258.84 for long-grain rice; minus $273.71 for corn; and minus $352.75 for cotton.
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SOURCE: NAFB News Service
