A groundswell of farmers heading for USDA’s Farm Service Agency, the last-resort lender for operating loans and guarantees, might be expected with agricultural markets adrift and the U.S. Farm economy fraying in recent years.

Alternatively, how many FSA operating that is direct slipped 16 % from 2016 to 2018 while running loan guarantees plunged 27 per cent.

The decline “isn’t just what we anticipated, ” said William Cobb, acting deputy administrator of FSA Farm Loan products. Continue reading →