Idaho farmers confronting a ’horrible, perfect economic storm’

BONNEVILLE COUNTY, Idaho (KIFI) – Farmers are facing a vortex of problems as they enter Idaho’s prime growing season with limited water, low crop prices, higher gas and fertilizer costs, myriads of aphids and mite pests, abundant disease, damage from freezing temperatures and weeds run wild.

In addition, Idaho’s warm winter – combined with an abnormal number of freezing nights in April – has decimated the winter wheat and barley crop.

"I've seen a lot of people decide to Roundup crops. So they completely stopped the plant growth, and they're either putting the crop (or) not planting because of water shortages," said Juliet Marshall, Idaho Agricultural Experiment Station associate director. "I've seen people take their crop and mow it down.”

One expert reports as much as 50 percent kill on the main stems of winter barley and some fields of winter wheat.

“Farmers are facing a significant economic storm. Whether you're talking about drought and disease and insects and the overall economy associated with the price of inputs and the overall prices associated with commodities," said Marshall. "So this is a horrible, perfect economic storm for producers to be facing at this time."

Tune in tonight at 10 PM for further details on the dangerous economic conditions farmers are facing.