{"id":41350,"date":"2026-06-29T08:12:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T13:12:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/?p=41350"},"modified":"2026-06-29T08:12:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T13:12:12","slug":"a-real-farm-crisis-illinois-farm-bankruptcies-rise-for-3rd-straight-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/local-news\/41350-a-real-farm-crisis-illinois-farm-bankruptcies-rise-for-3rd-straight-year\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;A Real Farm Crisis&#8217;: Illinois Farm Bankruptcies Rise for 3rd Straight Year"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"pdfprnt-buttons pdfprnt-buttons-post pdfprnt-top-right\"><a href=\"javascript: window.print()\" class=\"pdfprnt-button pdfprnt-button-print\" target=\"_self\" ><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/wp-content\/plugins\/pdf-print\/images\/print.png\" alt=\"image_print\" title=\"Print Content\" \/><span class=\"pdfprnt-button-title pdfprnt-button-print-title\">Print<\/span><\/a><\/div><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rising land rent, an unstable export market and record farm debt are blamed\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By TARA SUN<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Medill Illinois News Bureau<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><a href=\"mailto:news@capitolnewsillinois.com\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">news@capitolnewsillinois.com<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<h3><b>Article Summary<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Family farm bankruptcies surged 46% nationwide in 2025. In the Midwest, filings jumped 70%. In Illinois, they rose 55%.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Total farm debt is forecast to hit a record $624.7 billion in 2026, as overhead costs like land rent and interest keep climbing.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Farmers bought a record 2.54 million crop insurance policies in 2025. But when the guaranteed revenue floor falls below production costs, farmers lose money on every bushel.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This summary was written by the reporters and editors who worked on this story.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SPRINGFIELD \u2014 With the growing season well underway in Illinois, farmers once again are struggling to turn an abundant harvest into survival.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2025, family farm bankruptcies surged<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fb.org\/market-intel\/farm-bankruptcies-continued-to-climb-in-2025\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">46%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> nationwide \u2014 reaching 315 filings and marking the third consecutive year of increases. The Midwest recorded 121 filings in 2025 \u2014 up 70% from the prior year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The trend has only accelerated. In April alone this year, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/farmpolicynews.illinois.edu\/2026\/05\/farm-bankruptcies-hit-six-year-high-in-april\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">62<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies were filed nationwide \u2013 a 130% jump from the prior year and the highest monthly total since February 2020. The USDA projects total farm debt will rise <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ers.usda.gov\/topics\/farm-economy\/farm-sector-income-finances\/assets-debt-and-wealth\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">5.2%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to a record $624.7 billion in 2026, with 330 bankruptcy cases filed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI\u2019m scared about there being a real farm crisis,\u201d said Eliot Clay, executive director of the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts. \u201cThis could come down to people being able to save their farms \u2013 just knowing that they could put it into some conservation easement or something. Like, they need anything that they can get.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For Illinois, the crisis is playing out as lawmakers just finished a budget session that delivered few meaningful results for an industry under siege. Gary Asay, who has farmed in Illinois since 1976 and sold crop insurance for more than 20 years, sees clear reasons to worry.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe increase in the number of bankruptcies and the increased buying of higher-level crop insurance are both signs of the stress that\u2019s in the industry,\u201d Asay said. \u201cFarmers are under stress. They may be having to borrow more money. Therefore, they want more protection.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Crop insurance, he pointed out, can\u2019t fully protect farmers from losses. The most common policy, Revenue Protection, covers only up to<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/farmdocdaily.illinois.edu\/2013\/01\/the-75-to-85-coverage-level-choice.html\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">85%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of projected revenue.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cEven with the best crop insurance coverage you can buy, if that coverage is below your cost of production, you can still lose money without even collecting,\u201d Asay said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/esmis.nal.usda.gov\/sites\/default\/release-files\/795725\/cropan26.pdf\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2025<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, U.S. soybean production totaled 4.26 billion bushels, with the average yield per acre estimated at a record high 53.0 bushels per acre. Illinois alone harvested more than<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/capitolnewsillinois.com\/news\/illinois-grows-millions-of-bushels-of-soybeans-why-arent-we-eating-them\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">639 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> bushels in 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Then, in February 2025, the U.S. imposed a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/presidential-actions\/2025\/11\/modifying-duties-addressing-the-synthetic-opioid-supply-chain-in-the-peoples-republic-of-china\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">10%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> tariff on Chinese products. And China \u2013 once the world\u2019s largest buyer of U.S. soybeans \u2013 stopped purchasing U.S. crops. Last September marked the first month since 2018 that imports from the U.S. fell to zero, according to China\u2019s General Administration of Customs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Farmers had entered the 2025 season with a smaller safety net after the projected price for the crop insurance guarantees fell by <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/farmdocdaily.illinois.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/fdd030425.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">8.7%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that year. The drop meant less protection heading into the spring planting. But because yields were high, most farms still generated revenue above their guaranteed floor. Although farmers grew plenty, they sold every bushel for less than it cost to produce.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cA lot of farmers cannot sell their corn or soybeans at a profit right now, just because the price is so low,\u201d Asay said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bankruptcies in agriculture rarely follow a single bad year. For U.S. farmers, the financial squeeze began well before 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Real estate debt \u2013 tied to the land farmers rent or own \u2013 is expected to reach <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fb.org\/market-intel\/usda-cuts-2025-farm-income-as-weakness-persists-into-2026\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$404.3 billion<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in 2026, a reflection of the high cost of farmland that has squeezed so many operators.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOverhead costs represent the largest cost component on the U.S. farm, accounting for nearly one-half of total costs during the 2020-24 period,\u201d said Joana Colussi, a research assistant professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University, citing<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/ag.purdue.edu\/commercialag\/home\/resource\/2026\/05\/comparing-corn-production-costs-and-returns-in-the-united-states-and-brazil\/https:\/ag.purdue.edu\/commercialag\/home\/resource\/2026\/02\/u-s-and-brazil-soybean-competitiveness\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Purdue data<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u201cEighty percent of the farmers in the Midwest, they rent the land.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Colussi has tracked the financial squeeze on farmers across the Midwest. When land prices rise, so does the rent \u2013 a fixed cost that farmers pay regardless of crop prices or yields. That leaves farmers searching for ways to keep operations going. \u201cThe way to continue being competitive is to try to reduce the costs,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Diversification into niche markets \u2014 non-GMO (genetically modified organism), organic or specialty crops \u2014 offers one path forward, though Colussi mentioned it\u2019s not a quick fix<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Farm crisis reminiscent of the 1980s.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rep. Charlie Meier, R-Okawville, who is a farmer himself, described the current moment as reminiscent of the 1980s farm crisis. \u201cThere were massive bankruptcies in the \u201880s,\u201d Meier said. \u201cA lot, a lot of farms went under.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The trigger now and then is the unstable export market. But the financial strain was already visible. In 2025, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported that <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagofed.org\/publications\/agletter\/2025-2029\/february-2026\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">5.6%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of farm loans were classified as having \u201cmajor\u201d or \u201csevere\u201d repayment problems \u2014 the highest since 2020. That means borrowers were falling behind on payments or reworking their loans. It\u2019s an indicator that many farmers were struggling to repay old debt while borrowing more to plant the next crop.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ahead of the 2026 legislative session, farm groups pushed for estate tax relief, one of the Illinois Farm Bureau\u2019s top priorities, along with payouts for farmers to protect their land and programs that help them find new buyers for their crops. But in a tight budget year, those priorities stalled.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Illinois Farm Bureau did not secure passage of the Family Farm Preservation Act, which would have raised the state\u2019s estate tax exemption from <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/capitolnewsillinois.com\/news\/for-young-people-looking-to-take-over-illinois-farms-the-costs-can-be-steep\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$4 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to $6 million, reducing the tax burden on inherited farms and making it easier for young farmers to keep the land and operations intact.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">State Rep. Sharon Chung, D-Bloomington, who serves on the House Agriculture Committee, was also unable to get a relatively small boost for farmers through this session.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She pushed for a $10 million increase in funding for Soil and Water Conservation Districts through<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ilga.gov\/Legislation\/BillStatus\/FullText?GAID=18&amp;DocNum=4755&amp;DocTypeID=HB&amp;LegId=165887&amp;SessionID=114\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">House Bill 4755<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. But the final Fiscal Year 2027 budget held funding at<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brownfieldagnews.com\/news\/illinois-conservation-districts-planning-to-push-land-conversion-fee-this-fall\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$4.5 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for the third straight year, far short of what advocates say districts need. These districts are trusted by local farmers because they work alongside them, offering advice on how to farm more efficiently at a lower cost.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Clay, the district\u2019s executive director, said the biggest need is giving districts \u201cthe financial certainty that they can hire and keep people hired.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Without that, districts see constant turnover. That means farmers lose access to experienced local advisors who understand their land and can help them navigate conservation practices that might save money and keep them afloat.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAgriculture is the No. 1 producer for our economy in Illinois,\u201d Chung said. \u201cAnything we can do to help prop that up is so important.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite those unpassed bills, farmers did secure a few victories. The final budget included changes to the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.farmweeknow.com\/policy\/state\/general-assembly-approves-56-billion-budget\/article_73760996-3177-4544-9e2e-2173fc919ca0.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Farmland Assessment Law<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 extending a tax break for conservation practices through 2031 \u2014 and avoided cuts to key programs, including the Illinois Department of Agriculture, agricultural education and cover-crop incentives that enrich the soil.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While farmers had hoped Springfield could do more, they also recognized that forces shaping the industry go far beyond the influence of legislators: falling crop prices, an unstable export market and rising costs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As farmers face mounting distress, the history of the 1980s hangs over the heartland.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThere\u2019s just not enough room for error right now. Something that happened in the past can take down a farmer today,\u201d Asay said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tara Sun is a graduate student in journalism with Northwestern University\u2019s Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications, and is a fellow in its Medill Illinois News Bureau working in partnership with Capitol News Illinois.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/capitolnewsillinois.com\/\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Capitol News Illinois<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rising land rent, an unstable export market and record farm debt are blamed\u00a0 By TARA SUN Medill Illinois News Bureau news@capitolnewsillinois.com Article Summary Family farm bankruptcies surged 46% nationwide in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":41351,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>&#039;A Real Farm Crisis&#039;: Illinois Farm Bankruptcies Rise for 3rd Straight Year - Effingham&#039;s News and Sports Leader, 979XFM and KJ Country 102.3<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Effingham&#039;s News and Sports Leader\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/local-news\/41350-a-real-farm-crisis-illinois-farm-bankruptcies-rise-for-3rd-straight-year\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"&#039;A Real Farm Crisis&#039;: Illinois Farm Bankruptcies Rise for 3rd Straight Year - 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