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Mar 08, 2018
U.S. agriculture, especially the soybean industry, is highly dependent on trade and exports, making them particularly vulnerable to retaliation following today’s decision to impose steel and aluminum import tariffs by President Trump.
China is not only U.S. soy’s largest customer, but also the top market for U.S. soybeans, purchasing more than all our other customers combined, accounting for $14 billion in sales and more than a third of total U.S. soybean production. And the soy industry has heard directly from the Chinese government that U.S. soybeans are a prime target for retaliation.
Any retaliation from one or more of soybeans valued trading partners will kneecap prices received by soybean producers and further hurt the already depressed farm economy.
Farm income in down 50 percent compared to 2013. Now is the time to seek additional trade opportunities to support rural America and the rural economy, not jeopardize agriculture’s reliance on exports.
This issue affects every soy famer in the United States, and farmers are worried, even terrified, at what these tariffs will lead to.
