PHILADELPHIA, Tenn. — Eddie Summit, a cattle and row crop farmer, said it's getting harder to make a living farming and bring affordable food to consumers. Right now, as he struggles to sell soybeans, he's leaning into raising his cattle, specifically around 1,000 to 1,700 cows at a time.

"The margins have not changed, the amount of money I make hasn't changed, it's the price," Summit said. "When I first started this, I was buying cattle for $200 to $300 a head and sell them for $500 or $600. Now they cost $2,500 coming in and I sell them for $2,900 or $2,800."

Agriculture experts like Charley Martinez , an assistant professor in the Agriculture and Resource Economics department at the University of Tennessee, said the beef industry is complex, and some are doing well.

"If you look do

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