COLUMBIA – As COVID-19 continues to spread in the United States, the agricultural industry is facing challenges related to demand, the workforce and widespread uncertainty. Scott Brown, an associate extension professor of agricultural and applied economics at the University of Missouri’s College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, offers answers to common questions about how the agricultural economy is doing amidst the COVID-19 outbreak. FARMERS HIT? U.S. farmers are finding many challenges due to the COVID-19 outbreak. There is considerable uncertainty around corn and soybean crops, which are being planted in increased numbers after last year’s flooding and wet weather disrupted the crops. Corn-based ethanol, for instance, continues to suffer as crude oil prices have remained below $25 a barrel. The rock-bottom oil prices are due, at least in part, to the economic downturn resulting from the global COVID-19 outbreak. Many ethanol plants are idle as turning corn into fuel is…