By Grant Winterer
Two former Nebraska agriculture leaders have signed a bipartisan letter to Congress expressing concerns about the state of the nation’s farm economy.
The letter comes as the country sees a spike in farm bankruptcies. Nationally, 315 farms filed for Chapter 12 bankruptcy in the past year, up 46% from 2024. Chapter 12 allows farmers to restructure debt while keeping livestock and other assets.
The Midwest has been disproportionately affected. One hundred and twenty one farms filed for bankruptcy in 2025, a 70% increase from 2024. Seventeen of those filings were in Nebraska, the second most behind Iowa in the 13-state region.
Nebraskans Bart Ruth and Don Hutchens are among those who signed the letter. Ruth is an eastern Nebraska farmer and past president of the American Soybean Association, while Hutchens was previously the director of the Nebraska Department of Agriculture.
The letter urges congressional committees to hold hearings regarding the ongoing challenges faced by America’s farmers, which include a shrinking international market and increased operating costs due to tariffs.
“Unfortunately, the indiscriminate and haphazard nature of the current tariff policies have not revitalized American manufacturing and have significantly damaged the American farm economy," the letter reads.
The U.S. is running a historic agriculture trade deficit, which has hit Nebraska farmers trying to compete in international markets. Ongoing trade wars have shrunk U.S. agriculture exports; in 2018, The U.S. exported 47% of the world’s soybeans, down to just 24% today.
Nebraska is fifth nationwide in soybeans grown.
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