Transcription
There is uncertainty among Wisconsin farmers as China raises tariffs on US imports to 125%. The top US farm export to China is soybean. Farmers' plans are made years in advance, and changes are not made quickly. Regardless of the tariff, seeds like this will be planted in the fields. We want to make sure there's fair trade for everyone and every product. We're hoping that there's a way that that can be done without hurting agriculture.
This is not just a trade dispute. This is the unraveling of agriculture as we know it. Across the United States, fields lie unplanted, silos overflow with unsold grain, dairy tanks sit idle, and farmers, the backbone of America's economy, are watching their markets disappear in real time. The trade war of 2025 is no longer a political strategy. It is a systemic crisis. And at the center of it all: US tariffs that were supposed to protect American jobs but are now choking off American exports.
Let us begin with soybeans. Once the crown jewel of US agricultural exports, soybeans are now in freefall. Of those soybeans come from Iowa. China announced Friday a tariff of 125% on all US imports, a response to President Trump's 145% rate on Chinese goods. The American Soybean Association's president says it's not good news for America's soybean farmers. China, the world's largest buyer of soy, has walked away from the American market completely. The reason: a retaliatory tariff so steep—125%—that US soy is now uncompetitive. Since January, not a single new order has been placed. The result: prices have collapsed, storage tanks are full, and Brazil is reaping the rewards. With China shifting its orders to South America, Brazilian soybean prices have soared to a premium, while US farmers are forced to cut back acreage just to survive. In Wisconsin alone, soybean acreage is expected to fall by more than 12%. Nationally, farmers are pulling back by millions of acres. Some are switching to corn. Others are walking away altogether. But corn is no safe haven. Corn prices are weakening. And while the US once counted on China to expand its corn imports, that door has also slammed shut. Even Mexico, America's top corn buyer, is threatening tariffs of its own. Amid this uncertainty, farmers are planting more corn. But they are planting it in fear.
Before we continue, hit that like button to help us beat the YouTube algorithm and to show your support. The message from China is chilling. Imports of US corn, soybeans, and sorghum are being cancelled en masse. Instead, China is buying from Brazil and Argentina, locking in long-term contracts that will be hard for the US to ever recover. And it is not just grain. It is meat. US pork, once in high demand in China and Mexico, now faces tariffs so high—over 170% in some cases—that it is effectively banned. Orders have dried up. Hog farmers are warning of oversupply. Prices are falling. Beef is also under fire. While it has not been hit as hard, new tariffs from China and potential retaliation from Canada and Europe threaten to derail hard-won export gains.
In the dairy sector, the damage is worse. China's 125% tariff on US dairy has decimated the export of whey, milk powder, and cheese. Welcome back to Squawkbox. We got some breaking news overnight: China raising its tariff on US goods now to 125%. It says it no longer will match US tariff increases because, at this point, American imports aren't marketable. At even longtime buyers in Canada and Mexico are reconsidering their contracts. Processors are already pulling back. Cold storage is filling up, and with prices falling, many dairy farms are once again on the brink. Before we continue, hit that subscribe button to show your support to the channel.
Even specialty crops are being hammered. California's almond growers have lost the Chinese market. Citrus growers face duties from both Canada and China. In Washington, apple and cherry exports to Asia have collapsed. Pears are rotting in storage. And the growers, they're asking a grim question: Who are we growing for? Sorghum, once a success story, is now a casualty. US sorghum exports to China have dropped by 95%. With no market, the grain is being stored, dumped, or sold at a loss. Farmers are cutting acreage or gambling on a comeback. But the outlook is bleak. Wheat, too, is under pressure. China has turned to Australia and Argentina. Europe is hinting at tariffs on US grain. And in the American Midwest, farmers are wondering if they will have any buyers at all.
What is happening is not just economic; it is existential. Farmers are filing lawsuits. States are challenging the White House. Trade groups are demanding action. And behind closed doors, there is panic. Because this is not the first time this has happened. In 2018, a similar trade war cost US farmers $27 billion; 71% of that was soy. Now in 2025, we are doing it again, but this time with fewer bailouts, less patience, and lower prices. US agriculture is being sidelined, and the competitors, they are stepping in. Brazil is exporting record volumes. Europe is filling dairy orders. Argentina is shipping wheat to new buyers. Even India is gaining market share in nuts and specialty crops. The rest of the world is not waiting. And the US, it is being left behind.
At the consumer level, prices are rising. Grocery bills are up. Imports of food staples—shrimp, fruit, spices—now carry new costs. Tariffs on inputs like fertilizer and packaging are driving prices higher. Still, families are seeing the effects. And for low-income Americans, the pain is immediate. Meanwhile, farmers are facing bankruptcy. Loan defaults are climbing. Equipment orders are being cancelled, and mental health crises in rural communities are rising. This is not just a trade war. It is a rural recession, and the administration's response: a pause, a 90-day delay on some tariffs, a hint at new negotiations, and vague promises of another bailout. But for farmers, delays are not solutions. They need customers. They need contracts. They need clarity. Instead, they are getting chaos. And the longer it lasts, the more irreversible the damage becomes. Because this is not just about losing sales. It is about losing trust. Foreign buyers are looking elsewhere, and they may not come back. For decades, US agriculture built its reputation on reliability, on quality, on partnership. In 2025, that reputation is at risk. And the question now is simple: How much more can farmers take? Because what is happening now is not just about policy. It is about survival. It is about whether small farms, the lifeblood of rural America, can withstand a political crossfire that seems to ignore their value entirely.
On the ground, the decisions are brutal. Families are selling off herds. Multigenerational farms are closing down. Rural banks are tightening credit, and state agricultural fairs, once a celebration of growth and bounty, are now scenes of worry. With fewer exhibitors and more foreclosure notices, the social cost is climbing. Mental health hotlines in farming states are seeing record call volumes. In Iowa and Nebraska, rural therapists are reporting surges in anxiety, depression, and even suicide risk. The fear of losing land, legacy, and livelihood is no longer abstract. It is real. It is immediate, and it is spreading. Meanwhile, in Washington, the rhetoric continues. But on the back roads and farmsteads of America, the patience is wearing thin. And in places like Beijing, São Paulo, and Brussels, the shift is already underway. New partnerships, new supply lines, new loyalties. The farmers of America are watching their hard-won positions slip away. Not because of a drought or a disease, but because of a war they never chose.