(NewsNation) — American farmers say the U.S.-China trade war is leaving them uncertain of what is going to happen to their farms.
President Donald Trump has imposed a 145% tariff on Chinese goods, and in response, China raised tariffs on American agricultural products such as corn and soybeans to 125%. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, China imported more than 27 million tons of soybeans from the United States, worth $12.8 billion, in 2024.
Farmers in more agricultural states like Ohio are facing billions of potential losses as tariffs take effect and China starts to pivot, buying from competitors in countries like Brazil and Argentina and ramping up production within the country.
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“They could cause some price problems for us with Mexico being an importer of corn and China with some imports of soybeans,” farmer Bryan Claude said.
Farmer Gary Brumer told NewsNation he believes Trump is just using the tariffs to scare other countries into making a fair deal.
“Sometimes you have to break something in order to fix it,” he said.
Trump has said China was in negotiations with the White House on tariffs, but China said Thursday there were no active negotiations underway.
Farmers have said they hope to see a change in tariffs from Washington and have turned to lawmakers for support to offset any potential losses.
