People outside of agriculture call it the “off season” for farmers, but corn and soybean producers certainly don’t consider it that way—it’s just a different kind of busy!
What are farmers thinking about as we close out 2025?
“People are doing a lot of year-end planning, as you can imagine right now, as well as a lot of tax planning,” says Craig Carter, Regional Vice President of Agricultural Lending for Farm Credit Mid-America.
He tells Hoosier Ag Today that now is the best time to put together a plan for your farm operation for 2026.
“Make sure that you’re connecting with your accountant and talking to your lender to understand the income you might need to take, or expenses you might need to think about to finish it the way you want it to,” says Carter.
He says it’s possible that 2026 could be a carbon copy of 2025 in terms of continued low commodity prices and high input costs.
“It’s important to have realistic expectations about what the landscape looks like, so be thinking about meetings with input suppliers and talk with your lender as you plan for that crop.”
Craig says that one way that farmers can strengthen their financial resilience in 2026 is to find those creative ways to expand and diversify their farm operation.
“It is a tough environment. We’re in a down cycle in the economy, and so whether that’s looking for value-added markets, diverse revenue streams, be thinking about a way to have some kind of off-farm income. Maybe those things can create some cushion in a down cycle like this in a tough time like this that can allow someone to come out on the other end.”
He adds that Farm Credit Mid-America offers a number of tools and resources to help farmers in 2026.
“If someone is looking for advice, thinking about next steps and growing their operation, or making an investment, we have a lot of fantastic people that are here to serve,” he says.
To learn more, visit FCMA.com.
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