LIVE: Drought Leaves Farmers’ Futures Uncertain

It may be game over already for some of them this growing season.

We keep hoping for some relief from the drought with more rain in the forecast.

But for some farmers in the region, anything we get may be coming too little, too late.

Bell Bank agribusiness analysts say some farmers may already be out of the growing game this season.

In the north central part of North Dakota, the lack of hay is forcing farmers to liquidate cattle.

And while rain there may come in time to save some row crops, the situation is bleak for small row crops, which are all but done.

Further east, other farmers are hanging on from rain to rain.

The situation in the region is getting comparisons already to the agricultural crisis in the late 1908s.

Which is worse — now or 1988 — is a question Bell Bank Agribusiness Development Director Lynn Paulson gets asked a lot.

The record droughts in the region then put a lot of farmers out of business.

But Paulson said these days, there’s even less room for failure in the industry, because it’s so much more capital-intensive now.

Paulson Zoomed in live with the Morning Show to talk with Emily Welker about farmers’ frustrations, especially because commodities prices are so strong right now.

For more of Paulson’s insights on what’s to come in the region’s ag industry, or to find out more about Bell Bank’s upcoming ag conference, check out the link, here:

https://bell.bank/news/bell/agviewslive#.YNISDmhKiUk