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The chief economist of the Indiana Farm Bureau is telling farmers to reassess their profitability expectations and make plans for managing cash-flow problems after a new agricultural report estimates record soybean stocks and large corn inventories.
Todd Davis said profit margins will continue to be squeezed and farmers may need to use working capital or increase operating debt to meet liquidity problems, according to a news release from the bureau.
The October World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report released Friday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects record soybean crops for the U.S. and Indiana at 4.58 billion bushels and 346.8 million bushels, respectively. The national corn crop is projected to reach 15.2 billion bushels.
The 2024 U.S. soybean crop would be a record and 10% larger than last year’s crop, the news release said. The U.S. corn crop would be the second largest on record and about 1% smaller than in 2023.
The crop inventories would be the largest relative to projected use since 2019.
“As farmers update their crop enterprise and cash flow budgets, it may be an excellent opportunity to talk with your lender about your profitability expectations for 2024 and your plans for managing any cash flow problems,” Davis said.
One positive note was that the October report reduced the projected corn supply and increased corn demand from the September estimates. “However,” Davis said, “there is still a large amount of inventory looming over farmers’ heads.”
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