Many farmers are critical of President Donald Trump’s tariffs and the damage done to commodity prices and markets, but say they are appreciative that he has offered to provide cash to help make up their losses.
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced Tuesday a $12 billion plan to borrow money from the U.S. Treasury to pay producers of commodities including soybeans, corn and wheat to compensate for losses due to trade disputes. The USDA also will buy surplus supplies of others including milk, fruit, nuts and rice and distribute them to food banks. Perdue says the plan is a short-term solution to give Trump time to negotiate trade deals. Farmers say they’d rather have tariffs ended and trade restarted with China, Mexico, Canada and the European Union.