It has been a really tough time for farmers all over the United States. Farmers continue to struggle with a prolonged downturn in the farm economy, tariffs, embargos, and bad weather challenges.

According to Farm Bureau, farm bankruptcies have risen again in 2019. The USDA is projecting 2019 farm net income will reach $88 billion. However, around $33 billion of that is related to trade assistance, disaster assistance, and the government farm bill.

Farm Bureau also reports that the 2019 farm dept in the U.S. will be at a record-high $416 billion. 2019 has also seen a dramatic number of farm bankruptcy filings.

Statistics fro the uscourts.com outlines the over the 12 month period ending September 2019 that Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies totaled 580. That is an increase of 24% from the prior year and the highest level since 676 filings in 2011.

Here is a break down of the number of Bankruptcies of some midwestern states:

  • South Dakota – 13
  • Minnesota – 31
  • Iowa – 24
  • Nebraska – 37
  • Wisconsin – 48
  • Kansas – 37
  • North Dakota - 3

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