Trade battle puts soybean farmers at risk

The leafy soybean plants reach Caleb Ragland's thighs and are ripe for harvest, but the Kentucky farmer is deeply worried. He doesn't know where he and others like him will sell their crop because China has stopped buying.

Beijing, which traditionally has snapped up at least a quarter of all soybeans grown in the United States, is in effect boycotting them in retaliation for the high tariffs President Donald Trump has imposed on Chinese goods and to strengthen its hand in negotiations over a new overall trade deal.

It has left American soybean farmers fretting over not only this year's crop but the long-term viability of their businesses, built in part on China's once-insatiable appetite for U.S. beans.

“This is a five-alarm fire for our industry,” said Ragland, who leads the American Soybean Association.

If no deal is reached soon, some farmers hope the government will come through with aid as it did during Trump's first term, but they see that only as a temporary solution. Trump said Sept. 27 he is considering an aid package.

U.S. and Chinese officials have held four rounds of trade talks between May and September, with another likely in the coming weeks. No progress on soybeans has been reported.

Getting closer to harvest, “I’m honestly getting worried that the time is running out,” said Jim Sutter, CEO of the U.S. Soybean Export Council.

Political pressure

After Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese goods, China responded with tariffs of its own, which now total up to 34% on U.S. soybeans. That makes soybeans from other countries cheaper.

Soybeans are the top U.S. food export, accounting for about 14% of all farm goods sent overseas.