Top U.S. business leaders are urging the President and Congress to avert the fiscal cliff of automatic budget cuts and tax hikes January first that could set off a new recession and prompt another U.S. debt downgrade. U.S. agriculture could pay a heavy price if the crisis isn’t prevented.

American Farm Bureau Senior Economist Bob Young says the combination of spending cuts and tax increases could amount to well over half-a-trillion dollar hit to the economy - the kind of hit that could cause another recession. Young says agriculture would not be singled out - but wouldn’t be immune either…