By Tom Polansek and P.J. Huffstutter

CHICAGO, Feb 3 (Reuters) – The chair of the U.S. Senate’s agriculture committee warned on Tuesday that farmers were suffering heavy losses, while more than two dozen former industry leaders sounded the alarm about the risk of a “widespread collapse of American agriculture” ahead of a $12 billion government bailout expected to reach growers this month.

For three years, the costs of seed, fertilizer and other farm inputs rose, while plentiful grain supplies limited profits for farmers, economists said. Then, President Donald Trump returned to office last year, sparking trade disputes that disrupted U.S. crop exports and immigration crackdowns that increased labor costs and left some farms with crops rotting in fields.

Many farmers are now bracing to potentially lose money for a fourth consecutive year. Tough credit conditions are forcing those with limited cash flows to make decisions about what acres to plant and how much fertilizer to buy, economists said.

BY THE NUMBERS

* Former USDA and industry officials said in a letter toU.S. lawmakers that Trump administration policies harmedfarmers. * The Trump administration announced the $12 billion aidprogram last year, but it will only cover a fraction of farmers’losses, agricultural economists and bankers said. * The USDA said in a statement to Reuters that Trump wasusing every tool available to support farmers and ensure theyhave what they need to continue farming operations. * U.S. Senator John Boozman, a Republican from Arkansas whochairs the Senate Agriculture Committee, said in a webcast of aconference of state agriculture officials in Washington onTuesday that farmers growing crops are “losing money, lots ofmoney.” * Bankers reported a nearly 40% jump in new farm operatingloans in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to a year earlier,according to a Federal Reserve survey. * The average size of such operating notes was 30% biggerduring 2025 than a year earlier, according to an analysis of thedata by Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City staff. * The percentage of farmers expecting bad financial times inthe next year jumped to 59% in January from 47% in December,according to a survey released Tuesday by Purdue University andCME Group. * The percentage of producers who thought U.S. agriculturewould have widespread bad times during the next five yearsclimbed to 46% from 24% a month earlier, the survey found.

(Reporting by Tom Polansek and PJ Huffstutter; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

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