American agricultural representatives recently sent a letter to the U.S. Congress, lamenting the severe damage inflicted on the U.S. farming sector by President Donald Trump's tariff policies. They accused the administration of "artificially inflating agricultural input costs" and "directly taking money from the pockets of American farmers," calling the moves "inexplicable."
The letter painted a grim picture of the current situation using stark terms such as "the number of American farm bankruptcies has doubled," "the U.S. agricultural economy continues to deteriorate," and "American agriculture is facing widespread collapse." The letter was jointly signed by veteran industry leaders, executives, experts, and former senior officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. They pointed out that the Trump administration's tariffs on agricultural inputs like fertilizers, chemicals, and machinery parts have directly driven up production costs for farmers. These costs now far exceed commodity prices, leading to a significant decline in the global competitiveness of U.S. agriculture. Consequently, the agricultural trade balance has shifted from a substantial surplus several years ago to a historic deficit.
The letter warned that this year, only half of American farmers are expected to break even or turn a profit. The tariffs and the retaliatory measures they triggered from other nations have caused U.S. agricultural products to lose access to international markets. Taking soybeans as an example, the U.S. share of the global whole soybean export market has plummeted from 47% to just 24.4%—a near halving of its market share. Other agricultural products have suffered similar losses, with countries like Brazil, Argentina, and Australia stepping in to fill the market void. "The United States is no longer viewed as a reliable supplier," the letter stated.
This follows another open letter sent to bipartisan congressional leaders on Jan. 15, which also highlighted that rural America is experiencing an economic crisis, with farmers incurring heavy losses and farm bankruptcy filings continuing to climb. Both letters unanimously called on Congress to provide urgently needed assistance to stabilize the rural economy and protect rural communities.
The Nation magazine noted that American farmers, deeply harmed by Trump's policies, could present political opportunities for the Democratic Party. Although Trump announced a US$12 billion (approximately HK$93.8 billion) aid package for farmers in December, this amount represents only about one-third of the losses American farmers incurred last year alone.
(Source: Wen Wei Po)
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