to be up 24%, or $3.54 billion for a total of $18.33 billion in 2025, the report said.
Overall, the state is projected to see total crop and livestock receipts and government payments increase $6.52 billion in 2025, of which livestock and crop receipts account for 58% and 9% of the change, respectively, the report said.
As farmers plan for the upcoming year, policy uncertainty challenges them to make decisions, and many would like to see the farm bill move ahead.
Although Ifft calls farmers and ranchers the best risk managers around, failure to pass a long-term — typically five years — farm bill makes it difficult to plan. Crop insurance and other programs they depend on are included in the farm bill, she said, whereas ad hoc payments, such as for disasters, are part of the farm safety net and aren’t something that can be incorporated into farm planning.
She gave an example of a crop producer, making decisions in mid-November for the upcoming year. Many have already paid for some of their inputs, such as seed, for the coming year.
“If you pay early, either in cash or through early financing, you can usually get a lower price. It’s a farm management strategy,” she said. “Let’s say your crop producer margins are tight this year, but that there’s some advantage to prepay. You have to work with your lender.”
But the federal government has been talking about $12 to $15 billion of trade aid for crop producers, which could help pay for those inputs.
“You have to make this risk management decision, which, again, it’s very personal, no right or wrong,” Ifft said. “Do you ignore that you could be getting a substantial payment, maybe in a month, maybe in six months, and make that decision, or do you hold on, wait?”
Ifft and her K-State colleagues offered a webinar this year about farm management in the era of ad hoc payments, how to take into account these uncertain payments and how to use them to better position your operation in the coming years, she said.
Ifft said K-State is offering agricultural profitability workshops throughout the state, in collaboration with commodity organizations and others. The workshops are for producers and focus on the difficulties of “tighter margins and tougher decisions.”
