Trump Policies A Toxic Brew for U.S. Farmers
Among all the other scandals and I-can’t-believe-this-is-really-happening-in-America events we’re experiencing since Donald Trump returned to the White House add economic disaster in farm country.
Trump’s policies are devastating U.S agriculture and rural communities.
Tariffs. ICE raids. The dismantling of AID. Chaotic policy, much of it based on Trump’s perceived grievances. It’s all resulting in a toxic brew, not limited to a single crop or region of the country.
His tariffs led China to abandon the U.S. market for soy beans, one of the farm belt’s most profitable crops, and turn to Brazil for its purchases.
How Trump’s Policies Are Disrupting U.S. Agriculture
When Trump dismantled U.S. AID, he destroyed the market for sorghum, a major crop for farmers in Kansas.
Migrant farm workers, fearing ICE, left fruit and vegetable crops unpicked and rotting in the fields. That’s affecting the entire farm infrastructure---truck drivers, farm equipment sellers, processing, storage and the rural communities that support the industry.
As one example, taxes collected by the California farm community of Firebaugh fell 30% in 2025, while the number of families served by its food bank tripled.
Farm equipment maker CNH announced hundreds of layoffs across Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin in 2025, citing weak demand and higher material costs tied in part to Trump's tariff policies.
In 2025, crop farmers lost $34.6 billion, according to the American Farm Bureau. Farm bankruptcies increased by 36% in the first nine months of 2025, year-over-year.
USMCA Uncertainty and Its Impact on Farm Country
Now, Trump is even questioning whether the U.S. should renew its trade agreement with Canada and Mexico known as USMCA, the successor to NAFTA. These are the two most valuable trading partners the U.S. has. Among other things, they purchase nearly half of all U.S. dairy exports. Mexico alone counts for $2.5 billion of those exports.
But as we know, Trump doesn’t feel either country gives him the deference he’s due. With Trump’s ego and unpredictability, who knows whether USMCA will be extended, and if it is, on what basis? How do you run a dairy farm or any other trade dependent business with such uncertainty?
While none of this has been making much headline news in urban areas, farm country is well aware of what’s happening and who’s to blame for its deep trouble.
Rural Backlash and Political Consequences
A few weeks ago, when Trump visited Iowa as part of his “affordability” tour, the chief executive of the Iowa Soybean Association told the New York Times, “It is a dire time for American farmers, particularly the Midwest soybean and corn farmers….The chaos, the uncertainty — right now we have so many unknowns that there’s not a lot of clarity about where we’re going.”
Many current farm leaders fear speaking out to avoid Trump’s wrath. That’s why the other day a bipartisan group of past agricultural organization heads and congressional and other experts in the field took it upon themselves to send a letter to members of Congress urging that they “rein Trump in.”
Jerry Hagstrom, who writes the highly respected agricultural newsletter, “The Hagstrom Report,” noted, “In an interview, a signatory to the letter said that the retired leaders were frustrated by Republican leaders in Congress not conducting oversight over Trump’s tariff policies and that they want to provide ammunition to farmers critical of Trump's policies who are afraid to tell their Trump-supporting neighbors of their views.”
“Bipartisan farming advocates are concerned the industry could “collapse” in the near future, with the combination of a downturn cycle and the policies of the Trump administration putting the sector in a precarious position,” Hagstrom reported.
“It’s clear,” the farm leaders wrote, “the current administration’s actions, along with congressional inaction, have increased costs for farm inputs, disrupted overseas and domestic markets, denied agriculture its reliable labor pool, and defunded critical ag research and staffing.”
This week, the Jed Bower, president of the Corn Growers Association followed up with his group’s report. Bower wrote:
“As we celebrate 250 years of American resilience and innovation, we must confront the reality that our farmers — who built this nation’s economic foundation — are in jeopardy. This report makes clear that we are entering one of the most consequential periods in modern agriculture. If we fail to act now, America risks losing not just farms, but the communities, values, and economic strength that agriculture has anchored since the country’s founding.”
For decades, farmers, farm group leaders and rural voters have mostly been reliable Republican supporters. Trump won’t be on the ballot in November, but dozens of rural Republicans will be. And they will be paying the political bill for Trump’s policies.
Trump may wind up succeeding where generations of Democrats have failed: making rural America politically competitive again.
Comments? Criticism? Contact Joe Rothstein at jrothstein@rothstein.net
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