FILE – In this April 20, 2020, file photo, a farmer is silhouetted by the setting sun as a field is planted near Walford, Iowa. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette via AP, File)
Additional food price inflation could be on the horizon as rising input costs hammer small farmers. U.S. agricultural producers are reeling from Joe Biden’s inflation due to skyrocketing fuel and fertilizer costs.
A poll by Purdue University found fertilizer prices are expected to increase by 12 percent after a 100 percent increase in costs over the past year. Meanwhile, fuel prices rose more than 50 percent last year.
Farmer sentiment weakens as production cost concerns mount. Read the full Purdue University/@CMEGroup #AgBarometer report at https://t.co/zyUA9Pp9qZ. pic.twitter.com/QOlztDTufR
— Purdue Center for Commercial Agriculture (@PUCommercialAg) December 7, 2021
Market analysts say small farmers are hit the hardest by surging inflation as they remain over-leveraged, under-capitalized and facing labor shortages. Small farms account for 89 percent of farms in the U.S. and they make up 21 percent of agricultural production value.
Economists expect rising input costs to pass on to consumers, pushing foods prices even higher and making more people reliant on food stamps as well as other government handouts.
Source: One America News Network
