A new poll from Amato Advisors finds that farmers are overwhelmingly sending Washington, D.C., a clear distress signal on the economic challenges they face on a number of fronts. Michael Amato, the founder of Amato Advisors, talked about his biggest takeaways from the results.
“You know, economically, 78 percent of producers across the country, and this was their biggest challenge, noted – and it wasn’t even close – that they are deeply concerned about rising input costs, the cost of seed, cost of fertilizer, cost of other inputs that they’re using regularly, and also note that the Iran war was a major driver of that. 95 percent told us that the Iran war is raising costs for fertilizer and raising energy costs on their farm, and they’re feeling that, and tariffs were a close third for deep concerns. And so, what we’ve heard is that there are significant economic challenges.”
The poll also showed farmers don’t think policymakers are paying attention to their messages.
“We’ve also heard that they’re not being listened to. About 75 percent said that they do not believe that elected officials here in Washington, D.C., understand what it’s like to be working on a farm right now, and that more than half said that government policies over the last year have hurt their farm and even jeopardized their ability to pass it on to future generations. About a quarter said that current federal policy is having a direct negative effect on their ability to pass on their farm to future generations. So, we’re hearing loud and clear distress signals from across the countryside, and we’re also hearing that they don’t believe that elected officials are listening right now.”
Another big frustration in the ag community is the fact that little is getting done in Washington, D.C., due to partisanship.
“I would absolutely agree with that. I think farmers and producers are very pragmatic people, and they want their representation in Washington, D.C., to reflect that. And right now, there’s a big gap between working in a bipartisan way to come to the table and get solutions for producers, but I will also say that there is dissatisfaction with the folks that they sent to Washington right now. We asked, ‘Who do you point the finger at for the current challenges you face on the farm?’ 25 percent, and this was the highest-ranked option, said that President Trump is not delivering for producers right now, and I think that’s telling us when we think about the high rate of farm bankruptcies happening across the country, the commodity market volatility that they’re experiencing, there’s real economic distress happening. I think people want to be able to have strong businesses that can deliver and feed America, and I think that they’re being faced with challenges right now based on what’s happening in Washington, D.C.”