Farmer Sentiment Continues to Weaken to Start 2022

Farmer sentiment weakened in January as the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer declined 6 points to a reading of 119, its second-lowest reading since July 2020. 

The Index of Current Conditions fell 13 points to a reading of 133, while the Index of Future Expectations changed little in January, down 2 points to a reading of 112. 

Rising farm input costs and ongoing supply chain disruptions appear to be contributing to producers’ weaker perception of current conditions and expectations of their farm’s financial performance in 2022 when compared to last year. 

For the second month in a row, both the short-term and long-term farmland value indices declined. 

Supply chain concerns extend beyond farm machinery and farm building/grain bin construction plans. Disruptions in the supply chain for many farm inputs, coupled with strong demand, are pushing production costs higher. 

Fifty-seven percent of survey respondents in January said they expect farm input prices to rise by 20% or more in 2022 and 34% of producers said they expect prices to rise by 30% or more. 

The Ag Economy Barometer is calculated each month from 400 U.S. agricultural producers’ responses to a telephone survey. 

This month’s survey was conducted between January 17-21, 2022.