Joe White says this year's crops will generate just enough revenue to break even
RELATED VIDEO Farmers aren't reaping the benefits of the strong U.S. economy. CNN's Lisa Price reports. (June 30) Windows Media 28K 80K

In this story: Bounty of supply, scarcity of demand Foreign policy puts lucrative markets off-limits RELATED STORIES, SITES

From Reporter Lisa Price

KANEVILLE, Illinois (CNN) -- When Joe White hears talk of a record-breaking stock market, a robust economy and an era of unparalleled prosperity, he and many of his fellow farmers wonder why they have been left out.

Down on the farm, the good times seem to be passing people by.

"I see farmers that are anywhere from anxious to scared-to- death, and I'm not minimizing when I say that," said Ron Warfield of the Illinois Farm Bureau. "We're going to have to come together and say, 'How do we deal with it?'"

Bounty of supply, scarcity of demand

Anxiety is high because prices are low. Ever since Congress passed a bill lifting restrictions on the number of acres a farmer could farm, production has soared. The result has been a bounty of supply and a scarcity of demand that has driven down prices.

"I think somewhere we have to ask ourselves -- can we sustain 9 billion bushels of corn?" said farmer Ned Rolston. "I don't know. That's where it gets to be a very tough problem.

Domestic prices for corn, soybeans and wheat are at or near 20-year lows. And recent recessions in Asia and Latin America -- both huge markets for American agricultural commodities -- have driven down exports.

Foreign policy puts lucrative markets off-limits

Farmers also complain that strained relations with countries such as Libya and Iran continue to deprive them of lucrative markets that they desperately need.

Joe White is still trying to sell last year's crops, and he's not optimistic about the prospects for this year's bounty.

"I would say that at today's prices and the investment that I have in this crop, it's going to be break-even," he says. "That's nothing to live on."

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.