Farming Updates: Moisture Levels Race Cold

A few weeks ago, The 21st Show on WILL had interviews with farmers around Illinois with updates on harvest delays after rains and flooding caused a late start and prevented some planting earlier this year.

They cover everything from how relying on crop insurance still leaves them in a bind for financing and loans next year to why continued high moisture levels are preventing them from being able to harvest and store corn. The delays mean they're caught between corn with moisture levels that are still too high and the potential for an early snow that they need to harvest before.

It covers quite a bit and was pretty understandable for the lay person without an Ag degree. Excerpt from the description:

This spring, the Midwest was drenched with historic rains. Most areas in Illinois got between 6 and 20 inches more than usual. That’s according to the office of the Illinois state climatologist.

That wet weather has left many farmers across Illinois still feeling the effects this harvest season.

The USDA says as of last week, only 23 percent of Illinois corn had been harvested. A year prior, we were at 70 percent.

More at the WILL article here and the full audio segment here.

WCIA had an update this weekend on the current harvest in light of the early snows this month:

Record low temperatures hit Central Illinois. Some farms have to make changes to keep business afloat. “The cold’s come a little bit early this year,” said Megan Reynolds of Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery. “We went very quickly from autumn normal seasonal weather to very very cold. Something we’re more likely to see in January typically,” said Maggie Taylor, Owner of Delight Flower Farm. Maggie Taylor is the owner of Delight Flower Farm. They grow cut flowers for places like grocery stores and farmer’s markets. She says the cold slowed down some growth and construction on the farm. She says they’ll be okay. “But I know a lot of the conventional farmers around us are really effected,” said Taylor.

Data from the USDA said corn harvested for grain was at 71 percent. That’s compared to 96 percent this time last year, and soybean harvest was 87 percent complete. That’s down from 94 percent last year. Prairie Fruits Farms is also feeling the impact of the cold.

Full blurb here. The overall picture was already looking fairly grim according to the Farm Bureau a few weeks back:

Farm Bankruptcies Rise Again
Chapter 12 Filings Increase 24% Compared to Year-Ago Levels
USDA currently projects farm income in 2019 to reach $88 billion – the highest net farm income since 2014’s $92 billion, but still 29% below 2013’s record high. In addition, nearly 40% of that income – some $33 billion in total --  is related to trade assistance, disaster assistance, the farm bill and insurance indemnities and has yet to be fully received by farmers and ranchers (Is Farm Income Really Up?)...

With record-high debt, and more farmers extending their repayment terms, it should come as no surprise that Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies remain elevated. Data from the U.S. Courts reveals that for the 12-month period ending September 2019, Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies totaled 580 filings, up 24% from the prior year and the highest level since 676 filings in 2011. For the third quarter of 2019, Chapter 12 bankruptcies decreased slightly to 160 filings, down 2% from the previous quarter. 

More at the full Farm Bureau page here, including data and map breakdowns by State and region.

For some happier local farming news, there was a great article on local farmers donating their time and efforts for harvesting crops for the United Way of Champaign County from the News-Gazette here.

Previous Cheat Sheet Farm Update post: Rain Delays and Trade Wars