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Farm Economy Policy Solutions Within Reach

By John Newton

Key Takeaways

  • Farm country has endured three consecutive years of worsening economic conditions, spreading financial stress across much of rural America.
  • A prolonged cost-price squeeze has increased demand for credit, reduced equipment purchases and contributed to a slight uptick in farm bankruptcies.
  • Farmland values continue to provide equity support for farmers, helping to keep aggregate debt-to-asset ratios low and support access to capital.
  • Policy solutions such as year-round E15, the farm bill and economic aid are within reach in the Senate, offering opportunities to improve farm income, expand market access and support rural economies.

The U.S. farm economy is currently in the 12th consecutive quarter of a farm economic downturn, and given the cumulative effect of inflation, new economic pressures on input costs such as fertilizers and fuel, and crop prices below breakeven, how long the current downturn lasts will depend a lot on congressional action in the coming weeks and months.

According to the most recent data from the Kansas City Fed’s Agricultural Credit Survey, the farm income diffusion index — which measures the year-over-year change in economic conditions — was 66 in the first quarter of 2026, marking three straight years of deteriorating economic conditions on the farm and the longest downturn since that began in 2013 and lasted until 2020-2021.

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Pairwise has built its business around an idea that runs counter to how many companies approach innovation: make transformative technology easier to access.

In this Seed World interview, CEO Tom Adams discusses why broader access to gene editing could speed crop improvement, expand innovation opportunities and help agriculture address emerging challenges. He explains why Pairwise believes no single company can solve all of agriculture's problems alone—and why making advanced breeding technologies available to more organizations could accelerate progress across the industry.

The conversation explores how consumer trust influences technology adoption, why innovations like pitless cherries and seedless blackberries matter beyond convenience, and how future crop improvements could help address labor shortages, automation, harvest efficiency and other production challenges. Adams also shares his perspective on what the industry may be underestimating about the next wave of gene editing innovation.

Watch the full interview to hear why Pairwise believes agriculture is approaching an important inflection point for gene editing, and why the pace of innovation over the next decade could surprise the industry.

Topics Covered:

o Democratizing agricultural innovation

o Consumer trust and technology adoption

o The business case for sharing innovation

o Expanding innovation beyond major crops

o Next-generation breeding technologies