(NewsNation) — America’s farmers, especially soybean growers, have faced a tough year, spending more to grow crops than they earn selling them. The squeeze has increased food prices for consumers, but a new $12 billion federal aid package is offering fresh hope.
President Donald Trump announced the relief, which is being hailed as a lifeline for many in the agriculture community hit by rising costs for fertilizer, fuel, and seeds, as well as the impact from the trade war with China.
Farm groups and Republican lawmakers have pushed for this support in part to help cover expenses for next year’s planting season.
“This relief will provide much needed certainty to farmers as they get this year’s harvest to market and look ahead to next year’s crops, and it’ll help them continue their efforts to lower food prices for American families,” Trump said.
Farmers say costs are outpacing revenue
A Farm Bureau review of U.S. Department of Agriculture data found American farmers remain in the red for the third straight year — spending $179 billion to produce just $144 billion worth of crops. This year’s $28 billion shortfall pushes total losses since 2023 past $50 billion.
“What it costs us to grow a crop is not getting any cheaper,” said Texas farmer Dee Vaughn. “It’s getting more expensive every day, but what we’re selling is getting cheaper every day.”
Tariffs, soybeans and bankruptcies
Soybean farmers have struggled as China, their largest buyer, scaled back imports during the trade war with Trump over tariffs. Purchases have only recently resumed.
Meanwhile, more than 180 family farms filed for bankruptcy in the first half of the year — a 57% increase from the same period last year.
“We’re price takers, not price makers,” Vaughn said. “We are really, definitely in a bad situation right now, is that our input costs are so high and our what we’re selling is so cheap.”
What’s included in Trump’s $12B aid package?
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said farmers could see money as early as February.
She said the immediate value of the program at $11 billion — money that the White House said will offer one-time payments to row-crop farmers. Another $1 billion will be put aside for specialty crops as the administration works to better understand the circumstances for those farmers.
John Boyd Jr., founder of the National Black Farmers Association, told “Morning in America” on Tuesday that most farmers face January payment deadlines. He added that he’d like to see a full farm moratorium, including direct and guaranteed loans through the USDA and other agricultural lenders.
Rollins emphasized that tariffs are not the reason for the aid, despite some funding coming from tariff revenue.
“There is almost zero evidence, if any evidence, that what they are doing and the challenges that our farm economy is facing in row crops has anything to do with these trade renegotiations,” she said.
Later this month, the USDA will use a formula that estimates production costs to come up with a per-acre payment for each type of crop. Payments will be capped at $155,000 per farm or person, and only entities that make less than $900,000 a year will be eligible for aid. That will limit payments to large farms, which was a criticism of farm aid Trump delivered in his first term.
Farmers have until Dec. 19 to apply for the aid.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.