Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins speaks with reporters exterior the White Home on March 26, 2025.
Win McNamee/Getty Picture
cover caption
toggle caption
Win McNamee/Getty Picture
Tariffs are making life dearer for John Pihl. He is been farming in Northern Illinois for greater than 50 years.
“These tariffs are going to have an effect on all the pieces. It will have an effect on our elements — it is simply throughout the board. Which goes to harm all the pieces,” he mentioned.
Not solely do tariffs have an effect on the price of farm provides, however additionally they elevate the danger of retaliation in opposition to exports of U.S. crops: a double-whammy for farmers like Pihl.
“It is a great way to lose your clients,” he mentioned. “And I believe we’ll most likely lose extra on this spherical too, as a result of I do know that Mexico is our greatest importer of corn. However this time, they could determine that they’ll get corn from South America simply as simply as from the U.S.”
President Trump has imposed tariffs on nations from the world over, together with 25% on metal and aluminum, 25% on some Canadian and Mexican items, and a staggering 145% on Chinese language items. Thus far, essentially the most notable retaliation has come from China, which has now imposed a 125% tariff on U.S. items.
The White Home is contemplating methods to assist farmers. “We’re already beginning to consider what a mitigation effort would possibly seem like,” Secretary Brooke Rollins mentioned on Fox Information this week.
She nodded to help that Trump’s administration gave farmers throughout his first-term commerce dispute with China, cash that got here from a fund referred to as the Commodity Credit score Company (CCC).
It is a fund that had been round because the Nice Despair, defined Joseph Glauber, a former USDA chief economist. “This was actually a brand new factor that the Trump administration did, is that they tapped the CCC definitely at a stage that had not been seen earlier than for extraordinary funds,” Glauber mentioned.
Soybean planting close to Dwight, In poor health., in a file picture from April 23, 2020.
Scott Olson/Getty Photographs
cover caption
toggle caption
Scott Olson/Getty Photographs
Trump spent $28 billion in his first time period serving to farmers harm by tariffs
All informed, the primary Trump administration spent $28 billion bailing out farmers. This time round, the tariffs are a lot larger than they have been six years in the past, and it is unclear how lengthy they may persist.
NPR requested the White Home for particulars on what reduction is into consideration this time, however obtained no response.
The funds have been useful, Pihl mentioned. However they weren’t a repair for the longer-term harm achieved by Trump’s first-term tariffs.
“That was only for the one 12 months. What in regards to the market loss that continued by way of his time period and into Biden’s time period? I believe the quantity is unimaginable,” he mentioned.
China went elsewhere for soybeans
Soybeans are the place that harm is most seen. China has lengthy been the biggest marketplace for U.S. soybean exports. However through the commerce dispute in Trump’s first time period, China ramped up its purchases of Brazilian soybeans, changing U.S. soybeans. The U.S. market share has by no means recovered.
Corn grows on a farm on August 11, 2024, close to Elizabeth, In poor health.
Scott Olson/Getty Photographs
cover caption
toggle caption
Scott Olson/Getty Photographs
Trump expressed confidence this week that he’ll be capable to attain a take care of China to finish the escalating commerce struggle. For now, some within the farm sector are hopeful about Trump making offers to assist farmers.
“You recognize, he is a negotiator,” mentioned Kenneth Hartman, Jr., president of the corn board on the Nationwide Corn Growers Affiliation. “He did an excellent job negotiating the (U.S-Mexico-Canada Settlement) USMCA when he negotiated that his first time period. So we’re hoping that he can do one thing like that,” Hartman mentioned.
Tariffs — and support — can distort market alerts
There’s one other wrinkle to this all, which is timing. All of this tariff drama is unfolding within the spring, when farmers are making choices about planting huge export crops, like corn and soybeans.
American soybean farmers would possibly determine to develop different crops, like corn, to keep away from market dangers in China. That would weigh on corn markets.
But additionally, an support package deal introduced too quickly has the potential to distort markets, mentioned Glauber, the previous USDA economist.
“Should you’re too beneficiant with one crop vis-à-vis one other, you would have farmers making planting choices based mostly on what they assume these compensation funds may be,” Glauber mentioned.
Farmers additionally say authorities support is useful, however it’s not their first alternative.
“Farmers need markets. We’d like markets. We wish to promote our grain at a revenue,” mentioned Hartman, including that CCC funds are solely a short-term repair.
“It is supplemental, it is wanted as a result of it retains farmers from getting in worse monetary scenario, however funds should not the reply to a future profitable agriculture operation in america,” Hartman mentioned.
John Pihl feels equally in regards to the subsidies. “I do not need it, however I will take it. I might be an fool to not take it. That is about all I can say.”
