Ag Policy Blog

President Donald Trump vowed on Monday to "do some farm stuff this week" to help U.S. farmers cope with lost export sales to China due to the latest trade war.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last week he expects the administration to make an announcement Tuesday about aid to farmers who have lost sales to China due to the conflicts between the Trump administration and China.

According to the New York Times, Trump said Monday at the White House, "I'm going to do some farm stuff this week."

Reuters reported the aid package could reach as high as $15 billion.

Yet questions remain about exactly how the aid package would be funded. Trump has repeatedly suggested the funds would come from tariffs. Right now, the Commodity Credit Corp., is waiting for Congress to fund USDA to reload the $30 billion annual fund.

Any aid distribution to farmers also would need the Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices and operations to be open as well. The federal government shutdown is beginning to move into its second week.

China has stopped buying staples such as soybeans and sorghum. Farmers also complained after Bessent stepped in with a $20 billion aid package for Argentina that the move immediately led China to buy more soybeans from Argentina as a result.

Trump is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month.

Specialty crop farmers – fruit, vegetable and nut growers – also asking that they be included in any aid package as well.

The co-chairs of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, which represents fruit, vegetable, tree nut and landscape plant growers, on Monday wrote the president asking that specialty crops be included in any emergency economic aid initiatives for the agricultural sector.

The letter, which was signed by Cathy Burns, CEO of the International Fresh Produce Association; Mike Joyner, president of the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association; Dave Puglia, president and CEO of Western Growers; and Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council, said, "Specialty crop growers continue to confront a host of unprecedented challenges."

"Rising input costs, overly burdensome regulations, limited access to labor, unfair trade practices by foreign countries, and natural disasters ranging from flood to drought have all impeded the global competitiveness of our growers.

"We greatly appreciate the steps your administration is taking to fix each of these longstanding problems. However, it will take time for those efforts to bear fruit. In the meantime, our growers need a lifeline to stay afloat, and nothing short of the survival of our domestic industry is at stake," the letter said.

The specialty crop leaders added, "The good news is that during your first term, your administration saw these challenges and created USDA's CFAP-2 program, which reformed economic relief for specialty crop growers."

"Its commonsense approach became the model for how to quickly, effectively, and responsibly deliver economic aid to specialty crop growers ever since. It was designed to compensate only those growers who could demonstrate a decline in revenue during a specified period of time and do so under penalty of perjury and subject to audit -- just like every individual and business does each year when they file their tax returns with the IRS."

The International Fresh Produce Association noted that another letter to Trump had been signed by a large coalition of agriculture leaders.

"We need help," that letter said.

"We encourage you to continue using your considerable international leverage to secure new export market access for farm products. We also ask respectfully that you continue to champion domestic market expansion efforts.

"We know that building markets takes time, and while our producers do not want to be in the position of having to ask for more assistance, they do need a bridge to get to improved markets."

Also see, "ASA President Fears Losing China Market, Seeks a Level Playing Field With Brazil,"

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Jerry Hagstrom can be reached at jhagstrom@nationaljournal.com

Follow him on social platform X @hagstromreport

Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com

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