GrainStrategy

Willow Bend Family Farms

Lori Bergen · Washington County, KS · Owen Speck · client since 2017

184k bu at 72% priced · 721 head at 83% sold
$2.9M under management
Call before pricingCosts are estimatesLast spoke in 43 days8 other findings(785) 555-5545
1 break-even is more than 6 months old. Every target, every margin and every recommendation on that crop is measured against numbers set before this season's fertilizer, fuel and cash rent were known. Getting Lori Bergen onto Farmer Metrics is what stops this being a phone call every six months. See the referral path.
From their books
0%
The rest were stated on a call or estimated from county averages.
Oldest
7 mo
The desk treats anything past 6 months as not trusted.
Desk cushion
$0.10
A break-even is an estimate, so pricing exactly at one is pricing at the midpoint of an error bar.
On Farmer Metrics
No
Costs have to be collected by phone every season.

Cost of production, by crop

CropBreak-evenSourceAs ofExpectedCost of the cropCash bid over costTrusted
Soybeans
new crop · 656 acres at 53 bu
$10.70County estimateMay 9, 2026
3 months old
35k bu$372,018
$567/acre
+$0.04
bid $10.74
With a caveat
Soybeans
old crop · 611 acres at 48 bu
$10.81County estimateJul 9, 2026
1 month old
29k bu$317,036
$519/acre
-$0.11
bid $10.70
With a caveat
Corn
new crop · 571 acres at 177 bu
$4.17Stated on a callJan 9, 2026
7 months old
101k bu$421,449
$738/acre
+$0.22
bid $4.39
Out of date
Wheat
new crop · 316 acres at 61 bu
$5.77County estimateJun 9, 2026
2 months old
19k bu$111,223
$352/acre
-$0.05
bid $5.72
With a caveat

The desk treats a break-even older than 6 months as not trusted, because six months spans a planting-to-harvest change in fertilizer, fuel and cash rent. A February break-even used to justify an August sale is a different farm's numbers.

Cost per acre is the cost of the crop divided by planted acres, so it moves with yield as well as with cost. A good year lowers the cost per bushel without a single input getting cheaper, which is the part clients find hardest to believe and the reason the plan is written in dollars per bushel.