(NAFB.com) – American Soybean Association President Caleb Ragland testified before the Senate Finance Committee during a hearing on trade and supply chains. “Our industry has been developing the Chinese market since 1982, when the U.S. soy industry opened an international marketing office in Beijing,” Ragland said during testimony. “To put that in perspective, that’s four years before I was born.” He also said the farm economy is in a much different place than it was during the first trade war, and farmers are very concerned that a prolonged trade war with global trading partners will cause U.S. farmers to be forced out of business. The recent 90-day pause on the 155 percent tariff rate on goods to China and a temporary drop to 34 percent don’t alleviate soy farmers’ concerns. They’re hoping further negotiations will quickly clear tariff and non-tariff barriers. “There’s no offset for a drop in Chinese soy demand,” he added.
