Iowa farmers, feeling the strain, hope for positive outcome from Trump’s China summit

Harlan, Iowa — In Rick Chipman’s fields in Harlan, Iowa, young soy plants are starting to emerge.

“We’re off to a good start,” Chipman told CBS News. 

He farms 1,800 acres of corn and soy in Shelby County alongside a hog operation that offset last year’s losses following the Trump administration’s trade war that was devastating for farmers of row crops.

The price of soybeans is still significantly depressed, down nearly a third from 2022. That is why American farmers had big hopes for President Trump’s trip to China.

“We really haven’t heard yet if good things have happened or not,” Chipman said.  

Markets tumbled due to a lack of specifics following the president’s promises.

“We made great deals,” Mr. Trump told reporters Friday. “We did great trade deals.”

But China hasn’t made any commitments: not on timing, not on volume, not even on what they are buying. That matters because China purchases more soybeans than any other nation.

Asked by reporters aboard Air Force One Friday if he made a deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping on soybeans, Mr. Trump responded, “I did. The farmers are going to be very happy. They’re going to be buying billions of dollars of soybeans.”

The war with Iran has created an additional strain for farmers, raising the price of diesel by about 50%. The cost of nearly everything else, from seed to fertilizer, is rising too.

“Oh there’s $1000, $2000, $3000, it seems like an auctioneer when you’re filling the planter up,” Iowa farmer Clay Geyer said.

More farmers are being pushed into bankruptcy, as some look for income elsewhere.

“There’s a lot of farmers thinking, maybe it’s time to go get an off-farm job just to keep food on the table,” Geyer said.