(Radio Iowa) – Lower commodity prices and a drop in farm income are some of the issues farmers have faced this year. Iowa State Extension field agronomist, Aaron Saeugling says the farmers he’s talked to in southwest Iowa are adjusting. “You know, people are probably a little more cautious than they were a year ago. I think big equipment purchases are going to be, you know — probably a lot more cautious before they make those investments,” he says. Saeugling says a lot depends which areas had the best crop development.

“Everybody’s in a little different scenario. I mean, the bushels are there, the price is not. So, you’ll hear the grain merchandisers will use terms like, you know, ‘bushel their way out of it’,” he says. “Which at least you have bushels to sell. That’s the advantage of having a big crop, is that you have something to market.” Those who had dry conditions will not have the advantage of volume.

“When you get into extremely short crops or dry crops, you just simply don’t have the bushels to market,” he says. Saeugling says planting got started late in southern Iowa and that led to a late harvest, but he some reports of very good yields.