Bankruptcies happen, and they are a major concern in farming because a lot of money is spent on the hope of a return from the seed, and if the seed does not return enough of a harvest, the farmer can lose everything. This is part of the reason for creating GMO crops, because while there are many problems (and certainly a profit motive with them), they are an attempt to increase yield capacities while reducing problems so to ensure consistency in the food supply.
It is of interest that according to recent news, farm bankruptcies have now reached to an eight year high, signaling possibly further troubles with the economy.
Although farmers were able to celebrate the passage of the USMCA and signing of a phase one U.S.-China trade deal, many are still facing an existential crisis.
According to U.S. Courts data, U.S. farm bankruptcy rates increased by 20% in 2019, an eight-year high. There were a total of 595 Chapter 12 bankruptcies filed by family farmers.
“A lot of the bankruptcies have been on the dairy side of life and there have been a lot of mitigating impacts going on there,” Veronica Nigh, senior economist for the American Farm Bureau, recently told Yahoo Finance. (source)
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