Closing the Books on a Tough Year, Opening the Conversation in Nashville

Peter Bachmann

As combines go quiet and the 2026 crop year closes, few rice farmers will be sad to see it go. By almost any measure, it has been one of the most difficult stretches our industry has faced in a generation.

The numbers tell the story.

USDA now projects the 2026 crop at 153.3 million hundredweight, the smallest since 1987. Planted acreage is the lowest since 1972. Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas all planted fewer acres than they have in decades.

Those cuts weren’t made lightly. They came after a 30 percent collapse in rough rice futures, a global supply glut fed by illegally subsidized competitors like India, and input costs that were already untethered from reality being pushed even higher thanks to the war with Iran.

Add tariff uncertainty in important markets like Canada; sharply lower shipments to Mexico, our top market; the failure of Congress to pass a Farm Bill; and high interest rates and it’s no wonder some growers are having difficulty making the math work and are asking whether they’ll plant rice again.

Tighter supplies have lifted prices, but not enough. Economists estimate rice producers in the Delta could still lose more than $300 an acre, a sixth straight year in the red.

That’s the backdrop for the 2026 USA Rice Outlook Conference, December 13-15 in Nashville.

This year’s program was built around the problems farmers are living with right now.

The keynote comes from USDA Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Stephen Vaden, who brings deep experience in agricultural policy, trade, and international law. He’ll share his view of where agriculture stands and take your questions directly. By the time he takes the stage, we could have that Farm Bill, and I know implementation will be at the top of his mind. That conversation couldn’t be more timely.

More than 14 hours of education sessions follow. “Managing Input Costs & Capital Purchase Strategies” offers practical budgeting for a down farm cycle. “Farm Structure for Success” walks through structuring debt and operations to make the most of government and private programs. “Rice Markets in a Tariff-Whiplash Economy” unpacks what trade deals and tariffs mean for your bottom line through the rest of the Trump Administration, and “The Science of Rice Drying” will help you protect your investment.

On the opportunity side, “U.S. Jasmine 101” looks at the growing aromatic market, “From MAHA to School Meals: The Food Policy Issues Shaping Agriculture” will examine food policy in 2027, and international panels will bring importers from around the world to talk about where demand is headed and repairing relationships.

And because the strain of a year like this doesn’t stay in the field, a session on rural mental health carries a simple message: it’s okay to not be okay.

Hard years test an industry. They also show why we gather. Come to Nashville, bring your questions, and let’s plan the next crop together. Register before November 10 to save.