Farmers could face a challenging year ahead as experts predict troubles due to the Trump administration’s current policies. According to Land O’ Lakes CEO Beth Ford, President Donald Trump’s immigration policies will hurt farmers next year as they struggle to find laborers. She noted that roughly half of farm laborers in the U.S. are foreign-born.
Compounding the issue are export challenges from President Trump’s ongoing trade war and tariffs. Ford notes that tariffs could result in lower exports next year, further straining farmers’ businesses. This warning comes as President Trump seeks trade deals with various countries while keeping potential tariffs on hold. However, it’s unclear how many trade agreements will be made before tariffs resume.
In a post on LinkedIn, Ford cautioned that “farmers are shouldering a high level of risk, due to trade barriers, higher input costs, uncertainty around farm policy, and a lack of labor availability.”
U.S. Farm Goods Affected by the Trade War
Soybeans are one of the biggest farm goods produced in the U.S. that is affected by the trade war between America and China. That’s because China gets a large supply of its soybeans from the U.S. With its 125% retaliatory tariff in place, it seems likely that U.S. farmers won’t be exporting as many soybeans to the country.
In fact, China is already considering this possibility. The country has sought out other locations to source soybeans from. This could see China increase the amount of soybeans it imports from Brazil and Argentina to make up for the loss of soybeans from America.
What’s Next in the U.S. Trade War?
The trade war continues to evolve, with frequent updates and policy shifts. Investors that want to stay on top of all the latest trade war news can do so through the TipRanks Economic Indicators Dashboard.
