WASHINGTON (TNND) — American farmers have been struggling since China slashed U.S. agricultural imports following President Trump’s tariffs. Without another bailout from the U.S. government, the economic outlook for farmers, particularly those growing soybeans, is looking increasingly grim.
According to the American Soybean Association, China is the world’s largest soybean buyer, importing roughly 61% of the world’s traded soybean supply over the past five years, more than the rest of the world combined.
But after former President Trump imposed tariffs on China, Beijing responded by effectively cutting off most of its soybean imports from the United States. U.S. soybean exports to China dropped from 1 billion bushels in 2024 to just 200 million in 2025, leaving American producers with a massive surplus and shrinking profits.
Where Is China Getting Its Soybeans Now?
Since turning away from the U.S., China has relied heavily on Brazil to fill its soybean needs. Between January and August of this year, Brazil shipped more than 2 billion bushels of soybeans to China, according to researchers from Purdue University (published in Farm Doc Daily), setting new import records.
According to the American Soybean Association, “China has not been shy about its strategies to circumvent freshly harvested U.S. supplies this fall.” Instead, China has deepened its partnership with Brazil’s agricultural industry.
That relationship didn’t develop overnight. During America’s 2018 trade war with China, Beijing began investing heavily in Brazil’s farm infrastructure, helping the country expand its production and export capacity. Those investments have since turned Brazil into one of China’s largest and most reliable soybean suppliers.
Trump Weighs New $10–14 Billion Aid Package for Farmers
President Trump is reportedly considering another massive aid package for U.S. farmers as trade relations with China remain strained and America’s agricultural industry bears the brunt of those tensions.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, the administration is exploring a plan to provide between $10 and $14 billion in new aid to farmers hit hard by tariffs. The proposal would use tariff revenue, the money the U.S. collects from import taxes, to fund the relief effort.
Most of the aid would go to soybean producers, who have suffered the most from China’s trade retaliation, though other sectors of the farm economy would also receive assistance.
Funding Challenges
During his first term, Trump used money from the Commodity Credit Corporation, a federal account the USDA uses to finance farm programs, to distribute roughly $23 billion in aid to farmers during the last trade war.
But that same account isn’t available this time around. A Republican tax-and-spending bill passed earlier this year redirected funds away from the Commodity Credit Corporation, according to the WSJ, leaving the White House to look elsewhere for financing.
That’s why officials are now focusing on tariff revenue as the main funding source for this new package, according to Farm Action.
The American Soybean Association says many farmers are in dire need for relief and warn that, without federal support, some may not be able to cover their basic production costs if China’s restrictions on U.S. imports continue.