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| Best of NAMA 2026 |
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FARM PRESS: WHICH CROPS LOST THE MOST MONEY IN 2025?
Aug. 28, 2026
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| USDA data show all major commodity crops posted negative returns in 2025, with oats facing the steepest losses at -44% return on investment. Raney Rapp |
By Raney Rapp, Senior Staff Writer, Farm Press
As markets and growing conditions continue to disappoint producers across the country, turning profit on the farm remains a challenge. A closer look at the numbers suggests planting decisions play a role in farmers' ability to break even.
Commodity costs and returns data from the USDA Economic Research Service present a challenging environment for producers when it comes to crop expenses, with oats, sorghum and wheat taking the titles for least likely crops to achieve profitability. Although those three crops fared the worst, no major commodity came out as a true winner.
National return on investment figures for 2025 show widespread negative margins across major commodity crops.
In the deeper data, the Midsouth, Southeast and Delta regions show pockets of even more dire difficulties. Rice farmers in the Mississippi River Delta region had a -32% return on investment in 2025, and Arkansas rice farmers faced a similarly grim reality at -20%.
Peanuts showed more promise at -1% profitability in Virginia and the Carolinas. But a "higher" profitability percentage of -1% or -10% still means no capital to continue farming for another season, and certainly not the ability for the farmer to take a salary and provide for their family.
"One of the biggest misconceptions in agriculture right now is that rising farmland values automatically mean farmers are becoming more profitable," said Dusty Vauters of Mid-South Ag Equipment. "In reality, many producers are seeing the opposite. Crop returns often aren't keeping pace with the true cost of production."
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