The USDA’s Economic Research Service says a record $37 billion in payments from the Trump administration will help boost farm income in 2020. Bell Bank Senior Vice President of Agriculture Lynn Paulson acknowledges government payments can turn red ink into black ink at the bottom line of an income statement, but farmers shouldn’t fully rely on those payments. “We need to be cautious about government payments masking underlying issues an operation may have that we don’t address due to outside money.” In the Red River Valley, Paulson says farmers are generally optimistic about the farm economy. Part of the optimism is fueled by government payments, trade with China and what that’s done with commodity prices. Paulson will join RRFN at the Big Iron Farm Show on September 16.
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