In previous Ag Economy Barometer surveys, producers overwhelmingly said they expected USDA to provide compensation for weak commodity prices, similar to the 2019 Market Facilitation Program, say Michael Langemeier and James Mintert who produce the monthly report for Purdue’s Center for Commercial Agriculture. 

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This month’s barometer survey asked producers how they planned to use a supplementary payment from the USDA on their farms. Over half of respondents (53%) said it would be used to pay down debt. Meanwhile 25% said it would be used to strengthen their farm’s working capital position. A small minority of farmers said they would use a payment from USDA to invest in farm machinery (12%) or to cover family living expenses (11%).

Farmer’s appraisal of current conditions on their farms continues to be a tale of two economies, Langemeier and Mintert say. Livestock producers remain very optimistic about conditions on their farms, fueled in part by record-high profitability in the beef sector. At the same time, poor profit margins across all major crop enterprises lead crop producers to provide a notably more pessimistic view of the current situation on their farms. 

The October barometer survey took place from October 13-17, 2025.

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