With possible stronger reciprocal tariffs coming, small farmers can’t take much more, ag groups warn

A major trade deadline is growing on the horizon. In a little more than two weeks, stronger reciprocal tariffs could be a reality. However, one trade group says farmers cannot take much more, saying the ag industry is getting squeezed in more ways than one right now.

“One, we’re trying to sell our products overseas, and that’s made harder by a trade war. Two, we’re relying on inputs, whether that’s farm chemicals or fertilizer or the steel that goes into tractors. All of that gets more expensive, so farmers get squeezed on both ends, and that’s where you see bankruptcies, people getting out of farming, suicides, these are all bad things that happen when farmers get squeezed,” said Brian Kuehl with Farmers For Free Trade.

Farmers For Free Trade suggests reaching out to your elected officials to let them know what is happening on the farm.

Related Stories
Tariff refunds are underway, potentially returning billions to importers, as agriculture groups push for a larger role in trade policy and investigations.
Rising global supplies may cap soybean price strength, while sorghum prices hinge heavily on China’s export demand.
Input costs may stay elevated beyond tariff impacts.
Rising costs and prices are shifting acreage toward soybeans. Most fertilizer prices are up double digits from this time last year, with Urea seeing the largest gains.
Shaun Haney with Real Ag Radio joined us to break down the USMCA review and what Canadian producers and exporters should be watching in the months ahead.
Rising fertilizer costs tied to tariffs are tightening margins for U.S. wheat growers, according to new data from the National Association of Wheat Growers.

LATEST STORIES BY THIS AUTHOR:

What can these facilities do to protect themselves? I wrote about this issue last spring, and since that time, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued a significant opinion. That makes an update in order.
Updated Dicamba information is the topic of today’s Firm to Farm blog post by RFD-TV’s agri-legal expert Roger McEowen with the Washburn School of Law.
On January 31, the U.S. House overwhelmingly passed tax legislation containing provisions of importance to farmers and ranchers in particular and many taxpayers in general.
In this Firm to Farm blog post by RFD-TV legal expert Roger McEowen, he looks ahead at what might be the biggest issues in ag law and tax in 2024.
In part seven of his blog series,"Top 10 Developments in Ag Law and Tax in 2023,” agri-legal expert Roger McEowen covers the #1 issues, SCOTUS and defining a “Water of the United States.”