US farmers could be facing higher costs and lower business as a result of the tariffs. Some media impacts include:
Tariffs on farm equipment and parts
Steel and aluminum tariffs (e.g., 25% on imported steel) raise the cost of tractors, combines, grain bins, and irrigation systems.
Machinery and equipment parts from countries like China or the EU become more expensive, increasing repair and maintenance costs.
Tariffs on fertilizers and chemicals
Phosphate fertilizers (from Morocco) have faced duties, making a key crop input more expensive.
Urea ammonium nitrate (from Russia and Trinidad) has been tariffed, affecting nitrogen costs.
Herbicides and pesticides such as glyphosate, often sourced from China, face tariffs that raise chemical costs for weed and pest control.
Tariffs on fuel and energy inputs
Petroleum-based tariffs drive up diesel prices, a major input for tractors, harvesters, and irrigation pumps.
Higher fuel costs also raise transportation and grain drying expenses.
Retaliatory tariffs on U.S. farm exports
Countries like China, Mexico, Canada, and the EU have imposed retaliatory tariffs on key U.S. exports such as:
Soybeans (China’s 25% tariff significantly cut U.S. exports)
Pork and beef
Dairy products
Fruits and nuts like almonds, cherries, and apples
Tariffs on packaging and processing inputs
Plastic, aluminum, and steel packaging materials face higher costs from tariffs, which impact processed and packaged agricultural goods
As a result, there are increasing talks that the tariffs collected might be used to provide rebates. Presumably, that would include farmers. Trump wants to keep the farm belt in his back pocket. He does not want to anger them.
As such, he is also looking to get countries to pledge that they will purchase US agricultural goods as a prerequisite to lower US tariffs.
On Truth Social, Trump posted that Australia would import US beef for the first time. His post:
This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.