STARKVILLE — Despite some sharp decreases in row crop agriculture, cattle and poultry had a good year, bringing Mississippi’s 2025 estimated value of agricultural production to $9.51 billion.

Poultry continues three decades as the state’s top agricultural commodity, posting an anticipated year-end value of $3.73 billion and maintaining its upward trend.

Forestry ranks second with a 2025 estimated value of $1.47 billion. Row crops declined 9% overall, with corn seeing a large increase but cotton, peanuts, rice and soybeans facing significant declines in value.

The poultry industry got a boost as eggs rose to an estimated $351 million. Broilers account for the bulk of poultry’s value at $3.38 billion.

Josh Maples, agricultural economist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said poultry’s overall slight increase in value is the result of more broilers being produced.

“Prices were down slightly, but the increase in pounds sold still led to a larger value of production,” Maples said. “On the egg side, there was a jump in value of production driven by both increased production and stronger prices.”

Producers continue to face high input costs that challenge production value, and highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, remains a threat. Strict biosecurity measures prevented all but one case of HPAI in Mississippi in 2025.

Eric McConnell, associate professor of forest business in the MSU Department of Forestry and Forest and Wildlife Research Center, said forestry’s estimated 2025 value dipped 1%.

“We experienced a sizable increase in the small pine sawtimber — or chip-n-saw — harvest at the expense of larger-sized pine timber,” McConnell said. “Hardwood sawtimber saw a 14% increase in total value on a 10% increase in harvest for the year, but hardwood products overall comprised only 16% of the total timber harvest.”

Livestock was a bright spot, up 26% to an estimated $744 million.

“Cattle prices are much stronger than a year ago, which drove Mississippi’s cattle value of production to its highest level ever,” Maples said. “Cattle supplies are tighter, and beef demand has been very strong, supporting higher prices.”

Hog and catfish prices also rose from a year ago, with estimated 2025 values of $92 million and $196 million, respectively.

Will Maples, Extension agricultural economist, said row crops had another difficult year in 2025, driven by persistently low commodity prices and elevated input costs. The total estimated 2025 value for crops is $2.51 billion.

“Unfortunately, these challenges are not new, as producers have faced similar conditions for multiple years,” Will Maples said. “The decline in the value of production was largely price-driven, while input costs, though not directly reflected in value-of-production estimates, continued to erode farm-level margins.

“As a result, producers faced lower revenues and little relief on the cost side, further tightening already narrow profit margins.”

Multiple years of tight or negative margins have put row crop producers in a difficult position heading into 2026.

“Recognizing the immediate need for relief, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced $12 billion in support through the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, with payments expected to be issued by February 2026,” Will Maples said.

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