Real crop breakeven, profitability, and rotation math for a Claude Code skill — no invented numbers, no vague AI hand-waving.
A Claude Code skill for farm operators, ag economics students, and anyone who wants a real decision-support tool instead of a chatbot guessing at input costs.
Ask most AI tools "should I plant corn this year" and you get vibes. This skill either pulls a real number from the USDA NASS QuickStats API or refuses to answer — it will never fabricate a commodity price or yield.
python3 scripts/nass_lookup.py --commodity CORN --state IA --year 2025 --data-item "PRICE RECEIVED"
Pulls actual historical/current price and yield data from USDA's own public database. Requires a free API key (instant signup, no cost). Without a key, the tool tells you how to get one and exits — it does not make up a price.
python3 scripts/breakeven.py --seed 65 --fertilizer 140 --chemical 55 \
--fuel-labor 45 --land-rent 220 --expected-yield 195 --price 4.35
Real output from that exact command:
=== Cost breakdown (per acre) ===
Seed $ 65.00
Fertilizer $ 140.00
Chemical $ 55.00
Fuel/Labor $ 45.00
Land rent $ 220.00
TOTAL $ 525.00
=== Breakeven ===
Breakeven yield (at $4.35/unit): 120.7 units/acre
Breakeven price (at 195.0 units/acre): $2.69/unit
=== At your expected yield and price ===
Revenue/acre: $ 848.25
Cost/acre: $ 525.00
Profit/acre: $ 323.25
ROI: 61.6%
Every cost category is optional — omit what doesn't apply. The tool never assumes a missing cost is zero; it flags what wasn't counted so you know the number is a floor, not a guarantee.
python3 scripts/rotation_check.py --history "SOYBEANS,CORN,SOYBEANS" --proposed CORN
Flags same-family repeats (pest/disease carryover risk) and surfaces nitrogen-credit ranges when the prior crop was a legume — a real, quantifiable offset to your fertilizer line item, grounded in commonly-cited land-grant extension guidance (with the honest caveat that exact credit varies by region/soil — verify locally).
git clone https://github.com/mikeblythe/farm-economics ~/.claude/skills/farm-economicsClaude Code picks it up automatically next session. Or just ask: "what's my breakeven on 500 acres of corn at $4.35 with these input costs..."
- Never fabricates a commodity price or yield — real NASS data or nothing
- Never silently treats a missing cost as $0
- Presents rotation/nitrogen guidance as commonly-cited ranges, not certainty — a cross-check, not a replacement for your local extension agent or soil test
MIT