Farm loan defaults rise

The number of Minnesota farmers defaulting on agricultural loans has reached levels not seen since the 1980s.

"It's kind of a silent crisis," Roger Grugel, a lawyer who helps with the Minnesota Family Farm Law Project, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "It's much different than the 1980s when people were protesting and there were tractorcades."

In all, lenders have sent Minnesota farmers more than 3,670 default notices in the past 12 months, according to the University of Minnesota's Farmer-Lender Mediation Program. That's up 83 percent in just two years.

Dairy and pork producers have been squeezed particularly hard. A bumper grain crop may eventually drive down feed prices, but it won't solve the problems.

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Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune

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