At Commodity Classic in San Antonio, ag leaders aren’t mincing words about the pressure bearing down on America’s grain producers.
Soybean farmers are still digging out from the bruising trade war with China, triggered by President Trump’s tariffs. Just as a recent Supreme Court ruling on tariffs offered a glimmer of hope, that optimism was short-lived.
According to Scott Metzger, President of the American Soybean Association, tells Hoosier Ag Today that any sense of relief quickly vanished after President Trump’s latest tariff move—putting producers right back in the crosshairs of uncertainty.
“We were pleased with the Supreme Court’s decision because with the IEEPA (International Emergency Economic Powers Act) tariffs, those were coming back to hurt us,” said Metzer.
“[Those tariffs] were putting more money on our inputs—and already in a time when we’re in a super-tight margin economy at the farm. We were not real happy that [President Trump] came back and introduced another 10-15 percent round of tariffs. We’re hoping we can work through that and get through it,” he said.
After a seven-month period last year where China bought no U.S. soybeans, he says he’s cautiously optimistic about the renewed trade relationship between the U.S. and China—including China’s purchase this year of 12 million metric tons of soybeans.
“We were pleased with that. Obviously, 12 million metric tons is roughly half of where we’re normally at. It’s a good starting point. We’ll be a lot better when we see beans on the boat going over there,” he said.
However, Metzger adds that their focus is also to seek out new opportunities for using our soybean crop here in the U.S.—including the expanded use of biodiesel.
“Biofuels are one of our top priorities this year. We were glad to see 45Z get into place. It’s not final yet, but we got the first step of it done,” he says.
“The next big step is going to be getting the RV’s, coming out. I think that sounds like probably we’ll see that around March 15—when they’re supposed to come out. So, those two things are going to help with domestic crush, domestic oil, and it’s going to use some of our bushels up. Obviously, it’s does not replace the total amount that China was buying, but it is a step in the right direction,” says Metzger.
