Tennessee soybean farmers face tough decisions ahead of 2026 growing season

Tyler Stafslien shows off his soybeans at his Ryder, North Dakota farm on Nov. 14, 2025. A bushel of these beans were selling for $8.65 when he sold them to grain elevators this fall, which he said is far below his profit margin. (Photo: Gabrielle Nelson/Buffalo’s Fire)

Tennessee soybean farmers are still facing tough decisions ahead of the next growing season as they await aid from the federal government meant to offset substantial losses from 2025. 

Stefan Maupin, executive director of the Tennessee Soybean Promotion Council, described 2025 as a “trifecta” of inflation, extreme weather and unstable trade amid tariff negotiations. The University of Tennessee estimated in August that the state’s soybean farmers would see a combined $110 million in losses in 2025.

Disruption of trade with China, the number one purchaser of U.S.-grown soybeans in the world, ratcheted up pressure on soybean producers nationwide. 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is expected to start issuing one-time assistance payments at the end of February for commodity crop farmers who experienced trade market disruptions and increased production costs.

Eligible soybean farmers will receive $30.88 per acre, with a limit of $155,000 per producer. The USDA is also issuing payments for multiple other commodity crops based on acreage. The department released payment rates for each eligible crop on Dec. 31.

“Farmers are very appreciative of this, and we believe it’s a good first step, but overall, the payments will not make up for the losses,” Maupin said. “The inflation in the input products has still driven all of the cost to put in a crop to extremely high levels. The prices have improved on soybeans some, but certainly not to the levels they were before 2024.”

This means soybean farmers are, for now, still anticipating losing money on each acre they plant, he said.

Maupin has heard of some farmers who decided not to put in a crop this year, and many are still trying to make decisions for the upcoming season.

“The farmers, being the eternal optimists that they are, are hoping that they will have a good growing season and that the yields of their crops will be high and that they will help compensate for these high input costs and moderate prices,” Maupin said.

But another tough year may be too much to weather.

“There will be farmers that financially can try one more year, and they’ve indicated that they will, but that’s just not the case for everybody,” he said.

Farmer Bridge Assistance program

The USDA’s Farmer Bridge Assistance program will pay out up to $11 billion to producers of specific row crops at a per-acre rate:

• Barley: $20.51
• Canola: $23.57
• Chickpeas (Large): $26.46
• Chickpeas (Small): $33.36
• Corn: $44.36
• Cotton: $117.35
• Flax: $8.05
• Lentils: $23.98
• Mustard: $23.21
• Oats: $81.75
• Peanuts: $55.65
• Peas: $19.60
• Rice: $132.89
• Safflower: $24.86
• Sesame: $13.68
• Sorghum: $48.11
• Soybeans: $30.88
• Sunflower: $17.32
• Wheat: $39.35

The remaining $1 billion will be reserved for specialty crops, sugar and other commodities not covered in the Farmer Bridge Assistance program.

Payments are calculated using farmers’ 2025 planted acreage reports. To be eligible, producers must have an adjusted gross income less than $900,000. 

The USDA will begin issuing payments on Feb. 28.