American farmers will soon start receiving the first tranche of $30 billion in funding approved by Congress to fight a downturn in the markets, according to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
Speaking at the Commodity Classic event in Denver, Rollins said that the initial $10 billion in assistance should start moving in the next few weeks. She asked her team to “think creatively” about how to make the application process for the funds move quicker.
Farm income has been under pressure for the last three years after crop prices declined, while the cost of seeds, fertilizer and equipment kept going up. The US, known for being a global agriculture powerhouse, is also losing share in overseas markets and has never imported so much food.
“The state of the ag economy, especially for row-crop producers, is perhaps the worst it’s been in 100 years,” Rollins said on Sunday. “The last thing we want to be is the bottleneck to get the funds that are so desperately needed.”
The $30 billion in funding was approved in December, still under President Joe Biden, with Congress giving the US Department of Agriculture 90 days to start distributing the first tranche of assistance, Rollins said. But growers had become concerned that the agency’s review of a number of activities would slow down payments ahead of the planting season.
Rollins also said the USDA has completed a review of programs including the Environmental Quality Incentive Program and the Conservation Stewardship Program, and will be releasing funds to all who participated in the programs.
“Right now is a very expensive time on the farm,” said Illinois soy and corn grower Ryan Frieders, who said the aid will help cover expenses like seeds before cash from the fall harvest comes in. “It’s going to provide immediate relief.”
The additional money will help US farmers battle a global oversupply, with big crops expected in South America. Concern about tariffs is also spooking traders. After all, Mexico is the biggest market for American products corn and pork.
Soybean for May delivery tumbled as much as 1.7% to $10.08 a bushel, while corn for the same period tumbled as much as 2.9% to $4.56 a bushel. Both reached the lowest value for a most-active contract since Jan. 10.
South American production is “set to overwhelm the global marketplace regardless of any localized crop concerns, and the trade is reflecting that export issue right now,” Arlan Suderman, chief commodities economist at StoneX, said in a report on Monday. “Lingering tariff talk just adds more fuel to that fire.”
During a press conference earlier on Sunday, Rollins said she has a strong relationship with new Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of pesticides and vaccines.
“Perhaps I can spend a little time making sure that he understands that some of the things maybe that he has been told, or believed, or has read isn’t entirely accurate,” Rollins said. Pesticides and other crop inputs help “ensure that we are able to continue to feed America and, frankly, to feed the world,” she added.
— With assistance from Isis Almeida
(Updates with farmer quote, commodity prices from seventh paragraph.)
