Garth's take

University of Idaho ag economist Garth Taylor has an interesting perspective on the drought and the Idaho agricultural economy. One of the things I wanted to bring out when we talk about drought, we're talking about is effect upon agriculture in the state. There's always a little bit of a paradox in this, a little bit of drought, It's always kind of good for some farmers in particular, like potato farmers, the reduction in the quantity of produce is far offset by the increase in prices. That won't be the case for wheat, but it is for some of the crops that we grow here in the state of Idaho. And despite all of the devastating effects of the drought, your numbers say that we could still have a good ag year. We could have another great year. It's all dependent upon milk prices. I hate to give it to the dairymen every year and put the health of Idaho agriculture on the shoulders of the dairymen. But that's the way it is. It constitutes well over a third of our cash receipts. I just hate to put it all on milk prices, but to be blunt, that's what it is. So where Idaho econ goes, then dairy goes? No, let's put it the other way. Where dairy goes, Idaho's ag economy goes, And we've got $17/$18 million dairy Prices. This is what we need. I’ll go out far enough to say we'll break last year's records, maybe not without the covid payments and stuff like that, but we will break it if it holds up with this dairy price, seventeen, eighteen dollar milk, A different perspective to make it feel better.