Net Income Expected to Rise Significantly for Missouri Farmers
- Brooke Bouma Kohlsdorf
- Oct 31
- 2 min read
A new report predicts an increase in net income for farmers in the state of Missouri. This is some good news in a year filled with economic challenges like low commodity prices and tariff uncertainty with key countries like China.
The Missouri Farm Income Outlook is released twice a year by the Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center (RaFF) at the University of Missouri. The latest report, out earlier this week, showed income should rise by 58%. That’s noticeably higher than The Department of Agriculture (USDA) projections for a 41% increase in U.S. net farm income for the year.
This latest RaFF report also looks a lot different from the one released in April that predicted just a 9% increase in 2025 income. This year’s reports follow two consecutive years of decline.
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Factors that Increased Farm Income in Missouri
The report says the jump in income is mainly due to two things: money made selling livestock and government payments.
Here are some of the other highlights of the report:
Total crop receipts are projected to decline slightly (-1%) to $6.74 billion.
In Missouri, soybean receipts account for 41% of all crop receipts, and corn receipts account for 39% in 2025.
Livestock receipts will increase by 17% to $8.03 billion in 2025. This is mainly driven by a 21% increase in cattle receipts, due to higher cattle prices.
Cattle account for 50% of total livestock receipts, hogs account for 16%, and broilers for 14% in Missouri in 2025.
Total production expenses remain stable, as a $162.06 million (-9%) decline in feed costs would offset the $143.92 million (18%) increase in purchased livestock expenses. Declines in interest, net rent to landlords, and hire and custom machinery work help stabilize costs.
Missouri Farm Incomes Expected to Fall in 2026
The outlook for 2026 doesn’t look friendly. According to the authors of the study, Missouri net farm income will decrease in 2026 by 16%, as direct government payments return to average levels observed between 2018 and 2024.
In addition, cash receipts are expected to decline slightly for both crops and livestock. Production expenses are forecast to remain stable.
RELATED: A Missouri farmer shared with AFO why his love of farming keeps him motivated during hard times.
“While many producers are awaiting government payments from the Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage programs as well as from emergency and disaster relief programs, the outlook for the disbursement of that money is unknown,” Alejandro Plastina, director of RaFF, said.
Plastina went on to say that making a profit will continue to be a challenge for farmers raising crops. “When planning for 2026, farmers and ranchers should take action to secure sufficient liquidity to operate under sustained tight margins, barring unanticipated new government payments or pent-up demand for agricultural commodities,” he said about preparing for the next growing season.
