A Minnesota farmer is sounding the alarm on escalating farm stress.
Bob Worth of Lake Benton suggests a mental health crisis is occurring in agriculture.
“It is extremely serious.”
He tells Brownfield financial pressures, policy uncertainty, and unpredictable weather can all be factors.
“We haven’t had a suicide for awhile, it’s probably a couple three months. But I’m hearing that farmers cannot get an operating loan for this spring, and it’s spring, we’re planting. And it’s going to be really tough on them.”
Worth is a past president of the American Soybean Association and says this is arguably the most difficult time in agriculture since the 1980’s.
“There is nothing wrong to admit that you’re having depression, anxiety because it can be cured. I had it in the 80’s. So there’s nothing wrong to ask for help.”
He points out Minnesota is one of many states that offers free mental health resources, and encourages farmers who are struggling, or know someone who is, to reach out.
