2026 Fall Farm Outlook Lincoln Daily News Oct 2026 Page 17 Data shared by FBFM included income brought in, what the crop yields and prices were, what dairy, hog, beef, and grain farms earned, what the costs for growing corn and soybeans were and what the returns for livestock were. In looking at prices for crop yields, Zwilling reports, “crop returns averaged $938 per acre, $65 more than in 2024. Even with that increase, average crop returns per acre were the second-lowest of the past five years and $356 below the 2022 high.” As for costs, Zwilling explains, “per-acre fertilizer and pesticide costs decreased from 2024, while seed costs increased. However, total crop costs remained much higher than five years earlier. Across the 1,927 certified usable farms, crop costs averaged $335.71 per acre in 2025, compared with $335.48 in 2024.” In assisting farmers with managing their finances and collaborating with the U of I ACES, FBFM has been and continues to be a valuable resource for farming operations. [Angela Reiners] Sources: Angela Westen, Farm business consultant, FBFM Lincoln office Kaeb, J. & Stock, C. “Looking Beyond Yield: What Benchmark Data Really Shows.” https:// www.fbfm.org/posts/farm-benchmarking-dataanalysis-illinois-indiana, October 6, 2026 Illinois Farm Business Farm Management Association. “100 years of supporting farm businesses.” https://www.fbfm.org/about-us Zwilling, B. “2025 Illinois Farm Earnings Improve but Remain Below Recent Averages.” farmdoc daily (16):168, Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, September 18, 2026.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzExODA=