WEST LAFAYETTE, INDIANA, US — Higher input costs are weighing on US farmers, according to the latest Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer survey released on Oct. 6.

In the survey of 400 farmers conducted in mid-September, a record-high 52% of respondents cited higher input costs as their top concern. Alongside an 18-point drop in the Index of Current Conditions, overall farmer sentiment weakened in September, falling from 135 points in August to 123.

Although the Long-Term Farmland Value Expectations Index also reached a new high of 168, up 5 points from August, the Index of Future Expectations fell 9 points, as more respondents expected their operation to be worse off financially (35%) than better off (22%) a year from now.

“Producer sentiment this month reflects a growing divide between concerns about the near term and expectations for the longer term,” said Michael Langemeier, the barometer’s principal investigator and director of Purdue’s Center for Commercial Agriculture. “While higher costs and financial pressures are clearly shaping producers’ views of current conditions, strong expectations for farmland values point to a more positive outlook for some aspects of the agricultural economy.”

Growing pessimism about financial prospects over the next 12 months was reflected in the Farm Financial Performance Index, which fell from 103 in August to 90 in this month’s survey. The negative outlook on current financial conditions coincided with a 6-point drop in the Farm Capital Investment Index to 39.

This month’s survey included three sets of questions for corn and soybean producers, covering expectations for cash rents, cover crop use, and soybean exports and competitiveness.

Most producers (73%) expected cash rents to remain the same in 2027. Of the 22% who expected them to increase next year, about 47% anticipated an increase of 0% to 5%. A little less than half (46%) of the respondents said they currently plant cover crops, with about one-third of those indicating they have planted cover crops for more than 10 years, and 15% said cover crops are planted on most of their acreage. Twenty-two percent of respondents indicated that they have planted cover crops in the past.

When asked about the future of US soybean exports over the next five years, 37% of corn and soybean producers expect US soybean exports to increase, while 10% anticipate a decline. However, competitiveness remains a concern for many producers comparing US soybean production with Brazil’s as just under 20% of respondents said they were not concerned about the US position relative to Brazil.

Since July 2025, producers have been asked whether they believe the United States is headed in the “right direction” or on the “wrong track.” The share of producers who said the United States was headed in the right direction averaged 71% in the final six months of 2025 and 62% in the first six months of 2026. That share fell to between 51% and 54% in July and August before dropping below 50% in September.

Arvin Donley is editor of World Grain. He has been at Sosland Publishing Company since 2005, covering the grain, milling and feed industries. He is a 1989 graduate of the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Kansas.

Connect with Arvin Donley on LinkedIn or via email.