Regional Origination Specialist
April 6, 2026
Producers face challenges every year, and 2026 is no exception as high input costs, tight margins, and other factors are tossing them plenty of curve balls.
We sat down with three members of our farmer advisor group to learn what’s on their minds as they head into spring planting. We covered topics ranging from financial pressures to technology’s impact on their operations.
Thank you to the three producers: Taylor Currie, Gypsum, Kansas; Heath Koehn, Montezuma, Kansas; and Jeff O’Connor, Kankakee, Illinois. Scoular established the advisor group in 2023 to learn how best to serve producers and get feedback on our farmer-facing tools like ScoularView.
Kansas farmer Taylor Currie kicked off the conversation with a straightforward take.
“Inputs are a huge pressure,” he said.
Per-acre production costs for row crops are projected to rise again in 2026, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation. Total costs were projected to increase anywhere from 2.2 percent to 3.3 percent. Scoular can help producers manage price volatility through Latitude-Marketing Services, our customizable grain marketing and risk management tool.
In central Kansas, Currie says corn is more expensive to grow than soybeans, leading him to shift some corn acres back to soybeans in 2026. His corn seed and fertilizer costs have been two-and-a-half times higher per acre than soybeans. Nationally, the Iran war affected the price of fertilizer for farmers, though Currie says the impact hasn’t been substantial for his operation.
Jeff O’Connor, of northeast Illinois, first saw seed prices spike during the pandemic from supply chain disruptions. But he has been able to reduce his seed costs since then, partly through seeking more competitive pricing.
Heath Koehn, who farms in southwest Kansas, said repair expenses sting — especially for irrigation systems. He completes most repairs himself, but parts are expensive with a gear box costing $450. A major repair, such as a pump replacement, requires technicians and can total as much as $40,000.
“Repair costs on my farm are astronomical,’’ he said.
Despite the financial squeeze, all three producers see technology as a bright spot that can save time and money.
Currie uses a web-based platform that collects data from his combine and turns it into a map showing how parts of the field performed, helping him make decisions for next season.
“I can print a report, I don’t have to go back and do things with pencil and paper,” he said.
Koehn said a digital platform keeps field records — crop type, acres covered, and application rates— in one place that’s easy to pull up for reports.
“It takes the guesswork out,” he said.
O’Connor, an early tech adopter, has seen it evolve and become more helpful and easier to use.
“The new in-cab monitors are so much more intuitive,” he said.
Scoular has taken steps to improve tech for producers. One example is integrating e-sign into ScoularView, allowing producers to view and electronically sign their grain contracts directly within the app.
O’Connor said as weather becomes even more unpredictable, it’s essential to build soil health.
He has used cover crops and no-till and strip-till for the past 10-20 years, depending on the practice, to help build soil health.
“How can I continue to build more resilient soil so that when weather happens – the huge rain or the extended dry period – the soil is the buffer for more consistent yields,” he says.
Our farmer advisor group was instrumental in launching Scoular’s regenerative agriculture program in 2024. Growers provided feedback on Scoular’s scorecard, ensuring the program was realistic for growers while also helping customers in our supply chain make progress toward their climate goals.
On Currie’s farm, no-till has been used for over 30 years. He sees firsthand how fields in his area with conventional tillage generally show drought stress first.
He also plants soybeans immediately after wheat is harvested on most of his acres, helping keep living roots in the soil longer, improving soil health.
Koehn is focused on diversification as a resilience strategy.
Sunflowers, wheat, corn and soybeans are all part of his rotation. Sunflowers’ deep roots, for example, break up compacted soil, improving water filtration. He also put in his first canola crop in fall 2024 and likes how the irrigation needs are less than corn.