Outlook good for ag in ’97

An easing of grain prices will help hold livestock prices steady and keep Colorado dairies operating in 1997, agricultural analysts predict.

“Weld County, which is so dependent on livestock, will be helped by lower prices of grain,´ said University of Northern Colorado associate professor of economics Ann Garrison.

Record prices for 1995 corn, which sold for about $3 a bushel in 1996, were offset by low volume. Relatively little, 426 million bushels, was available to sell at that price.

The Colorado Department of Agriculture predicts that in 1997, expanded acreage for corn will lead to lower prices, about $2.75 a bushel. Volume…