Another big package of government financial aid cushioned the farm slump in 2000 but did little to lift agriculture's spirit. Overall, the industry's major financial indicators stayed remarkably healthy. Farmers delivered more red meat and poultry to supermarkets than ever before, and strong...

The rural economy broke free from the reins of recession in 2004 with an especially strong performance in the farm sector. Net farm income easily surpassed the record high of 2003. And the weakness that plagued the nonfarm rural economy in recent years appears to have been replaced with stronger...

The year just past was one of turbulent markets and unmet expectations for most of U.S. agriculture. Public and private attention focused mainly on the steep drop in farm commodity prices, and when the soggy markets might show signs of recovery. Yet while they captured most of the headlines,...

U.S. agriculture formally entered a new era in April 1996 when a new seven-year farm bill was signed into law overturning 60 years of commodity programs. The new bill set agriculture on a new course where markets, not government programs, will determine agriculture's products and its bottom...

U.S. agriculture had a very good year in 1997, with profits widely shared among the nation's farmers. While few producers could boast of bell-ringer profits, as they did in 1996, nearly all could claim a good year. The year was especially welcome to the nation's cattle producers, who had...

Harsh weather pummeled U.S. agriculture in 1993, destroying crops and threatening a downturn in the farm economy. But while the rough weather took a large toll from many farmers, others prospered. Overall, the industry ended the year in solid financial condition. Barkema and Drabenstott explain...

An old maxim holds that too much of a good thing can be bad for your health. That maxim pretty well sums up U.S. agriculture's predicament in 1994. The nation's crop producers produced record harvests and livestock producers sent record amounts of meat to the nation's meat counters. The...