Despite harvest challenges in many parts of the country, farmers last month reported a positive stance on the farm economy.

Agriculture Department officials and some outside experts expect landowners to sign up for the land-idling Conservation Reserve Program in the largest numbers in at least a decade due to the slow farm economy.

Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies have hit highs not seen for a decade in some states, setting off alarms, with some wondering whether the farm economy could be headed for a crisis similar to the one that occurred in the 1980s. A deeper look at the numbers tells a different story.

“Some deterioration in credit quality” for borrowers in the agricultural sector is evident in a new set of financial indicators of the Farm Credit System posted last week by the system’s federal regulatory agency, the Farm Credit Administration.