Iowa Farmer Defers Combine Purchase as Costs Climb

Aaron Lehman is running a combine on his Iowa corn and soybean operation that is nearly as old as his 26-year-old son, Benjamin. The machine has passed its typical 15- to 20-year lifespan, but Lehman said replacement plans are on hold. "We put off that decision a while ago when we saw all these other costs going up," he said.

Lehmans family has farmed roughly 500 acres between Des Moines and Ames since 1869. His crops mostly feed processing mills. He said the operation has barely turned a profit since 2023, and the family now leans on income from his wife Nicole, who works as a physician assistant. Lehman cut his own farm salary by one third and stopped about $7,500 in annual retirement contributions.

Fertilizer is his second-highest expense. Prices rose from $700 to $950 a ton over the past year, an increase of about 35 percent that Lehman tied to the war with Iran last spring. Midwest diesel prices are up about 71 percent since last year, and Lehman said harvest days can add $1,000 to daily fuel costs compared with 2025.

Health insurance costs added to the pressure. After pandemic-era Affordable Care Act subsidies expired this year, the family's monthly premium jumped from about $500 to $1,400. Nicole Lehman moved from a contract role to a full-time physician assistant job that carries insurance, bringing the monthly premium back near its prior level. She is paying roughly $16,000 a year in student loans at age 58.

Lehman, 58, is president of the 1,100-member Iowa Farmers Union. The group endorsed Democrats in all five federal races this cycle, four House and one Senate, the first such move in recent memory. Republicans hold all five seats. Lehman cited tariffs on foreign beef and trade policy uncertainty as concerns among farmers. He is backing Josh Turek for Senate, Sarah Trone Garriott for the House, and Rob Sand for governor, all Democrats.

The family has deferred buying a new vehicle and keeps a 2017 Ford Fusion with nearly 200,000 miles. They cut streaming services, host gatherings at home, skip coffee in town, and limit Colorado trips to once a year. Benjamin Lehman helps run the farm and works as an agronomist for a nonprofit while the family plans an ownership transfer. "We constantly worry about it," Aaron Lehman said. "It's challenging in good times to make that happen. It's much more challenging in times like this."