2022 Year Ahead Report – Forces That Will Shape the U.S. Rural Economy
Jan 10 2022
In 2022, the U.S. farm economy will continue to struggle with the ongoing supply chain issues and cost inflation pressures that burst to the fore in summer 2021. Strong commodity prices will be offset by increases in cost structure for nearly all crop production including row crops, fruits and vegetables and hay. However, a reduction in farm-level costs could be on the horizon for mid-2022, according to a comprehensive year-ahead outlook report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange.
CoBank economists view the short-term outlook as mixed for grain, challenging for farm supply and positive for biofuels. “The single biggest wildcard for U.S. agriculture in 2022 is export sales to China, which is currently the largest export market for U.S. farm products,” said Rob Fox, director of CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange.
The CoBank 2022 outlook report examines several key factors that will shape agriculture and market sectors that serve rural communities throughout the U.S.