U.S. farmers want to stop trade disputes ignited by Washington with its major trade partners even though they are able to receive a 12-billion-U.S.-dollar trade compensation package from Tuesday.
According to a report of Agweek, a magazine of agriculture industry, U.S. soybeans, wheat, corn, sorghum, cotton, pork and dairy producers welcomed the payment which aims to help them get through the current bad market conditions , but they thought it was not enough.
The plan of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued last week indicated that the 12-billion-dollar package would include programs for market facilitation, food purchase and distribution and agricultural trade promotion.
On Tuesday, the producers will be able to begin taking in production amounts to their local USDA Service Centers. The program will pay 50 percent of production initially, with possible future payment depending on market conditions.
Soybean farmers will receive 3.6 billion dollars of the 4.7 billion dollars in the market facilitation program, with payments of 1.65 dollars per bushel on 50 percent of production, the report said.
Nancy Johnson, executive director of the North Dakota Soybean Growers Association, was quoted by the report as saying that Soybean losses in the market right now are about three dollars per bushel, which means the payment won't come close to cover everything lost to the tariffs.
Lisa Richardson, executive director of South Dakota Corn, was quoted by the report as saying that a completed farm bill, more bilateral trade agreements and access to markets matter more than the aid package to corn producers.
She said that since the trade friction between the United States and China could be about to go to the next level, farmers in North Dakota, South Dakota and northern Minnesota could be particularly hurt by the White House's trade policy which have resulted in retaliatory tariffs.
