58. Liquidity, Land, and Ag's Next Chapter with Jackson Takach

Agricultural lending doesn't make headlines the way Wall Street does. But behind every farm mortgage is a system designed to keep capital moving, lenders solvent, and farmers farming. That system nearly broke in the 1980s. Congress responded by creating Farmer Mac, and the market has never been the same.In this conversation, Dr. Craig Lemoine sits down with Jackson Takach, Chief Economist at Farmer Mac, to trace the arc of agricultural finance from the farm crisis through COVID, the commodity boom, rising interest rates, tariff disruptions, and into a 2026 landscape full of uncertainty and opportunity. Jackson brings two decades of perspective to the conversation and doesn't shy away from what worries him or what excites him about the year ahead.Key topics:What Farmer Mac does and why the secondary market for ag mortgages mattersHow COVID triggered a refinancing boom that saved many farm operations real moneyWhy rising interest rates froze land supply and pushed farmland prices higher anywayHow tariffs hit soybean, cotton, and rice producers hardest and drove up Chapter 12 bankruptciesWhat 2026 looks like across corn, soybeans, biofuels, proteins, and specialty cropsHow farmers are tapping land equity to manage working capital as input costs stay elevatedConnect with us!Jackson Takach on LinkedInFarmer MacDr. Craig Lemoine on LinkedInAgriculture Focused Financial PlanningLand & Everything Else YouTube Channel