Farm Income

Editor:  Recently, we learned that farm income in 2011 is forecast to reach an all-time high, up 28 percent over 2010, signaling that American agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation's economy. The growth in farm income is also making a real difference for America's farm families, whose household income was up 3.1 percent in 2010 and is forecast to increase 1.2 percent in 2011. And despite marginal increases in retail food prices, all American families still pay substantially less for food at the grocery store than residents of nearly every other country, thanks to the productivity of our farmers.

USDA Maryland Farm Service Agency USDA Maryland Farm Service Agency Last week, we learned that farm income in 2011 is forecast to reach an all-time high, up 28 percent over 2010, signaling that American agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation's economy. The growth in farm income is also making a real difference for America's farm families, whose household income was up 3.1 percent in 2010 and is forecast to increase 1.2 percent in 2011. And despite marginal increases in retail food prices, all American families still pay substantially less for food at the grocery store than residents of nearly every other country thanks to the productivity of our farmers.

The extra-fat paychecks of poultry farmers and dairymen last year were not enough to offset big losses by grain growers, and the state ended 1998 with a 3 percent decline in net farm income, according to preliminary estimates released yesterday by the Maryland Agricultural Statistics Service.Total farm income in Maryland fell $8.2 million last year to $265.4 million.It was the second consecutive year that Maryland farmers have been hurt by low commodity prices and drought. Farm income last year was 26 percent lower than in 1996.

Last week, we learned that farm income in 2011 is forecast to reach an all-time high, up 28 percent over 2010, signaling that American agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation's economy. The growth in farm income is also making a real difference for America's farm families, whose household income was up 3.1 percent in 2010 and is forecast to increase 1.2 percent in 2011. And despite marginal increases in retail food prices, all American families still pay substantially less for food at the grocery store than residents of nearly every other country thanks to the productivity of our farmers.

Things are looking pretty good down on the farm.The Farm Credit Bank of Baltimore, Maryland's largest agriculture lender, reported a 37 percent jump in third-quarter net income yesterday and said it has not been plagued by the declining real estate values that have haunted some other commercial banks in the region.Stephen Swift, treasurer of the cooperative banking system, which serves the mid-Atlantic region and Puerto Rico, said the bank's $3.05 billion in outstanding loans has not been adversely affected by declining real estate values that have caused problems for urban lenders.

For the second consecutive year, Maryland farmers are going to take a big financial hit.According to figures released yesterday by the Maryland Department of Agriculture, net farm income from soybeans and corn is expected to fall 34 percent -- or $78.8 million -- from the five-year average of $231.4 million.The total loss from the impact of this summer's drought and low commodity prices, however, will exceed that level once the effects on livestock, tobacco, fruit and vegetables and nursery farms are totaled.

Maryland farmers are on the lookout for a contagious fungal disease that could devastate future harvests across the state. The disease, called soybean rust, or Asian soybean rust, has been steadily creeping toward Maryland from the Deep South since it was discovered in Louisiana a little more than a year ago. In other parts of the world, including southern Africa and South America, it has reduced soybean yields by as much as 80 percent when left untreated....

A recent lawsuit filed by the American Farm Bureau Federation against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is a slap in the face to the Chesapeake Bay. It is a cynical ploy to reverse years of hard work by farmers who want to do their part to help achieve clean water. And it comes just as a renewed sense of optimism is starting to emerge among all parties that the bay and its rivers can be restored. Polarization and conflict have trumped good sense and collegiality once again. Over the last year, the Farm Bureau has stood alone in its role as a massively funded national lobbying organization seemingly intent on frustrating progress toward clean water.

USDA Maryland Farm Service Agency USDA Maryland Farm Service Agency Last week, we learned that farm income in 2011 is forecast to reach an all-time high, up 28 percent over 2010, signaling that American agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation's economy. The growth in farm income is also making a real difference for America's farm families, whose household income was up 3.1 percent in 2010 and is forecast to increase 1.2 percent in 2011. And despite marginal increases in retail food prices, all American families still pay substantially less for food at the grocery store than residents of nearly every other country thanks to the productivity of our farmers.

Last week, we learned that farm income in 2011 is forecast to reach an all-time high, up 28 percent over 2010, signaling that American agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation's economy. The growth in farm income is also making a real difference for America's farm families, whose household income was up 3.1 percent in 2010 and is forecast to increase 1.2 percent in 2011. And despite marginal increases in retail food prices, all American families still pay substantially less for food at the grocery store than residents of nearly every other country thanks to the productivity of our farmers.

Editor:  Recently, we learned that farm income in 2011 is forecast to reach an all-time high, up 28 percent over 2010, signaling that American agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation's economy. The growth in farm income is also making a real difference for America's farm families, whose household income was up 3.1 percent in 2010 and is forecast to increase 1.2 percent in 2011. And despite marginal increases in retail food prices, all American families still pay substantially less for food at the grocery store than residents of nearly every other country, thanks to the productivity of our farmers.

A recent lawsuit filed by the American Farm Bureau Federation against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is a slap in the face to the Chesapeake Bay. It is a cynical ploy to reverse years of hard work by farmers who want to do their part to help achieve clean water. And it comes just as a renewed sense of optimism is starting to emerge among all parties that the bay and its rivers can be restored. Polarization and conflict have trumped good sense and collegiality once again. Over the last year, the Farm Bureau has stood alone in its role as a massively funded national lobbying organization seemingly intent on frustrating progress toward clean water.

This may be the year that farmers put a new set of spark plugs in their old Farmall tractors, instead of replacing them with new rigs. Farmers are not going to have as much money to bank at the end of the harvest season as the federal government forecast earlier this year and, as usual, they will draw the bulk of their earnings from off-the-farm jobs. When farmers close their books on the 2008 growing season, net farm income is expected to total $86.9 billion, according to a revised estimate by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Assuming that Mother Nature cooperates, farmers are in for a pay raise this year. It's not going to be the kind of increase that will allow the farmers to buy a luxury automobile, but it could be the year to replace an aging pickup truck. Economists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture are projecting that net farm income will rise 4.1 percent this year. Farmers in Maryland and across the country are expected to bank $92.3 billion by the end of the harvest season, up from the $88.7 billion that they pocketed last year.

Ask a farmer who has just won a multimillion-dollar lottery what he plans to do with the cash and he will probably flash a grin and say: "I'll keep on farming until the money runs out." Unfortunately, there still is a bit of truth in that decades-old farm-industry joke, as illustrated by a recent U.S. Department of Agriculture report that projects net farm income nationwide will plunge 20 percent this year, to $58.9 billion. The agency blames the decline on lower government subsidies and higher production costs.

Maryland farmers are on the lookout for a contagious fungal disease that could devastate future harvests across the state. The disease, called soybean rust, or Asian soybean rust, has been steadily creeping toward Maryland from the Deep South since it was discovered in Louisiana a little more than a year ago. In other parts of the world, including southern Africa and South America, it has reduced soybean yields by as much as 80 percent when left untreated....

Everyone who buys food or pays federal taxes should be interested in the coming congressional battle over the 1995 farm bill. The issue is simple: whether Congress will unleash the unrivaled productive power of U.S. agriculture or keep U.S. farmers plodding along under a tired, worn-out farm program created during the Great Depression.The right decision could produce significant savings for both consumers and taxpayers, while producing an estimated $35 billion windfall for rural America.Gradually doing away with the farm program over a five-year period -- and letting farmers produce for customers around the world without interference from Washington -- is the way to get there.

WASHINGTON -- U.S. personal incomes rose for the seventh straight month in July, enabling consumer spending to keep growing and push the economy toward its longest expansion ever, government figures showed yesterday.Incomes grew 0.2 percent in July after rising 0.7 percent in June, the Commerce Department said. Spending rose 0.4 percent after a gain of 0.3 percent a month earlier.The July increase in income was the smallest since the end of last year because federal disaster payments had swollen farmer income in June.

As state farmers close out their books on a year marked by severe drought, they can look forward to improved markets in 2003, experts said. "Not a great year, but a better year," said Keith Collins, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief economist. Prices for corn and soybeans should rise, and cattlemen and pig farmers also should fare better, he said. Collins also sees improvement in the poultry industry - a major component of Maryland agriculture. Other predictions by state agriculture officials include: A continuation of tough times for dairy farmers.

MidAtlantic Farm Credit, Maryland's largest agricultural lender, posted a healthy gain in earnings last year, and its borrowers shared in the wealth. During its annual meeting with shareholders Tuesday night at the Best Western Hotel in Westminster, the cooperative bank announced that net income rose 52.6 percent to $25.35 million for the year that ended Dec. 31. Gerri D. McGuire, senior vice president and chief financial officer, told the approximately 200 farmers in attendance that the earnings translated into $17.5 million in patronage refunds to borrowers, who are also stockholders of the bank.