URBANA, Ill. (RFD-TV) — Payments from Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) are now being issued for the 2024 crop year, offering meaningful help as row-crop margins remain tight. New analysis from farmdoc daily (University of Illinois and Ohio State University) shows that ARC-CO provides the bulk of support, with payments triggered widely outside the core Corn Belt, where county yields fell below benchmark levels.
Total ARC-CO and PLC outlays are estimated at $2.6 billion, with 89 percent coming from ARC-CO. Corn base acres are expected to receive nearly $1.3 billion (about $18 per acre on average), while soybeans total $618 million. PLC payments are limited to peanuts and seed cotton — roughly $295 million combined — as market-year prices for most commodities stayed above PLC reference levels.
For producers, these payments provide critical cash-flow relief heading into another year of elevated costs and narrow margins, supplementing recent disaster and ad hoc assistance.
Farm-Level Takeaway: ARC-CO delivers the bulk of 2024 support, offering key margin relief as producers manage tight operating conditions.
Tony St. James, RFD-TV Markets Specialist
To learn more, visit: farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2025/11/estimates-of-2024-arc-co-and-plc-payments.html.
Strong White House backing supports ethanol demand, but timing now hinges on Congress resolving procedural — at the same time as they push toward a spending bill to avert another federal government shutdown.
January 28, 2026 11:35 AM
·
Greater transparency into USDA-backed lending can help rural lenders and producers better assess credit availability and investment trends.
January 28, 2026 07:00 AM
·
Mixed product pricing and rising milk supplies suggest margin management will remain critical as 2026 unfolds.
January 28, 2026 06:00 AM
·
Corn and soybean exports continue to anchor weekly inspection totals, with China maintaining a visible role, while wheat and sorghum remain more dependent on regional and seasonal demand shifts.
January 27, 2026 03:08 PM
·
Lewis Williamson of HTS Commodities joined us with an update on the historic winter storm impacts and his outlook on today’s ag markets.
January 27, 2026 02:39 PM
·
Marilyn Schlake with the UNL Department of Agricultural Economics joined us for a closer look at the evolving role of livestock sale barns.
January 27, 2026 12:19 PM
·
