Purdue Extension agricultural economists are urging farmers to calculate estimated budgets for the 2014 cropping year and are offering a guide to help with the process. The 2014 Purdue Crop Cost and Return Guide, which is available for free pdf download from the Purdue University Center for Commercial Agriculture website, gives estimated costs for planting, growing and harvesting a variety of crops, as well as estimated contribution margins and earnings. The guide is updated frequently as grain futures prices change and the costs of inputs, such as seed, fertilizer, chemicals and fuel, fluctuate.

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According to Michael Langemeier, Purdue Extension agricultural economist, there are two main drivers in the 2014 guide compared with the 2013 edition: falling grain prices and fertilizer costs.

"The expected drop in corn, soybean and wheat prices is having a large negative impact on market revenue and contribution margins," he said. "More positive is the expected continued decline in fertilizer costs. Fertilizer prices are quite a bit lower right now compared to what they were last fall when we were working on the 2013 guide."

According to guide estimates, revenues for rotation corn on average-productivity land could fall by $140 per acre compared with 2013. Rotation soybean revenues on average-productivity land could fall by $35 per acre.

Read more from Purdue University about using the guide to calculate a budget for 2014.

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