There is considerable regional disparity in the outlook for 2012
farm business net cash income, as drought conditions put upward
pressure on crop (and feed) prices and increase insurance indemnity
payments. With higher-than-average crop farm income and sustained
cattle farm income, net cash farm income is forecast to increase by
over one-third in the Northern Great Plains. The Prairie Gateway
and Mississippi Portal are expected to benefit from increased
program crop farm income, while income in the Heartland is forecast
to remain relatively constant due to the predicted yield impacts of
the drought. The largest drops in net cash farm income are in the
Northern Crescent and the Fruitful Rim, where many farm businesses
specialize in dairy production and specialty crop production,
respectively. Dairy farm business income is forecast to decrease by
over 50 percent due partially to higher feed costs. This map
is from the Farm Sector Income &
Finances topic page on the ERS website.