Texas farmers are voicing growing concerns about tariffs being enacted by President Trump adversely affecting their ability to sell agricultural goods overseas, the Houston Chronicle reported. Texas Farm Bureau President Russell Boening said the tariffs could be especially tough on younger farmers.
“We understand that’s his negotiating tool, but at the same time tariffs can be hard on agriculture,” he said. “If you’re in a good spot you can withstand this, but you worry about the producer who has only been in this for five or 10 years and doesn’t have a lot of equity built up. Those are the operations that could be in trouble.”
Drought and low commodity prices are already taking a toll on agricultural revenue. Cotton sank to its lowest price in four years this month after China announced a 15% retaliatory tariff on several U.S. agricultural goods. China, the largest purchaser of grain sorghum in the world, has almost completely stopped buying the crop from Texas farmers, Boening said.
