Dark clouds loom for farmers and their bankers as crop prices languish

Midwest farmers and bankers face a reckoning this fall as low crop prices and a projected bumper harvest will produce financial losses for the second consecutive year.

After nearly a decade of boom times, farmers in the Upper Midwest lost $58 per acre on corn last year and almost $3 per acre on soybeans. Despite that, bankers around the region refinanced farmers’ debt and lines of credit on favorable terms.

But with a second year of losses ahead for many farms, patience among lenders is running thin. A credit crunch now looms that would mark a decisive turn in the farm economy.

http://www.startribune.com/dark-clouds-loom-for-farmers-and-their-bankers-as-crop-prices-languish/388797251/