With 315 filings, farm bankruptcies were up 46% from 2024. Declining farm receipts and rising expenses, primarily in crop markets, led to an increase in the number of U.S. farms filing for Chapter 12 bankruptcy in 2025.

U.S. commercial dairy farms of nearly every size are expected to post positive margins in 2026, but the link between increased herd size and profitability is sharper than ever.

With 216 filings, farm bankruptcies were up 55% from 2023. Declining farm receipts, primarily in crop markets, led to an increase in the number of U.S. farms filing for Chapter 12 bankruptcy in 2024.

In the news as we approach the middle of December, a federal committee upholds dairy dietary guidelines, dairy farmers are invited to apply for financial incentives to implement climate-smart practices, farm income falls $41 billion in two years, and the first HPAI-positive dairy case is found in Nevada.

I’ve shared before how we started: five unwanted cows and a Kmart corral. It was nothing to write home about, but we grew slowly on rented ground. It wasn’t easy. But do you know what the hardest part of the journey was? Breaking into the agricultural community as newbies.

Improved working capital and equity positions in 2022 helped reduce the number of U.S. farms filing for Chapter 12 bankruptcy in 2023. There will likely be additional financial stressors in 2024.

Here’s a summary of news impacting your dairy as we approach the middle of February 2024.

I’ll touch on a couple of those changes that we as taxpayers got to enjoy the last few years that no longer are in effect. However, the purpose of this article is to look ahead to what’s changing down the road.