By — Judy Woodruff Judy Woodruff By — Sarah Clune Hartman Sarah Clune Hartman Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/whats-making-it-harder-for-american-family-farms-to-survive Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Audio For generations, the family farm has been central to the American story. But these days, farmers are struggling with sharply higher costs and crushing debt on top of the same economic pressures the rest of the country feels. Judy Woodruff reports on what it takes to keep a farm going and who will carry on the tradition. It's part of her series, Crossroads: America at 250. Listen to this Segment Watch Watch the Full Episode PBS NewsHour from Sep 23, 2026 By — Judy Woodruff Judy Woodruff Judy Woodruff is a senior correspondent and the former anchor and managing editor of the PBS News Hour. She has covered politics and other news for five decades at NBC, CNN and PBS. @judywoodruff By — Sarah Clune Hartman Sarah Clune Hartman