By Andi Anderson
The 2025 crop production cost estimates, published in the January edition of Ag Decision Maker, offer farmers essential tools for budgeting and risk management. These per-acre estimates are scalable, making them suitable for farms of all sizes.
Key Highlights
Production Costs: Corn costs dropped by 2–3% due to lower fertilizer and chemical prices. Soybean costs increased slightly by 1%. Land costs remain stable, but machinery costs rose 3–4%.
Crop Budgets: The report includes budgets for corn, soybeans, alfalfa, oats, and grass pastures, along with low-till and strip-till methods. Common rotations like corn-after-corn and corn-after-soybeans are also analyzed.
Tools for Customization: Farmers can use web-based calculators and decision tools to input farm-specific data for accurate cost estimates. Tools are available for livestock, annual, and perennial crops.
Farm Bill Decisions
The report also provides tools for selecting farm bill programs like Price Loss Coverage (PLC) and Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC). Farmers can choose individual or county-level coverage. Enrollment for the 2025 crop year is open until April 15, 2025.
Scalable Budgets
Farm budgets reflect variable costs like fuel and seed that scale with acreage. Fixed costs, including depreciation and insurance, remain constant regardless of farm size.
With tighter profit margins and crop prices below production costs, these tools help farmers plan effectively. Visit the Ag Decision Maker website for detailed reports, tools, and updates to support your farm operation in 2025.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-zoran-zeremski
Categories: Iowa, Sustainable Agriculture