In Clarks Summit, two dairy farmers, two hog farmers and a potato farmer discussed how trade with countries around the world would benefit Pennsylvania’s agricultural industry.
"If we don't move our products, there's only so much availability for the demand that some of us will disappear, and it's going to be the family farm,” said Chris Hoffman, president of the PA Farm Bureau. He also owns Lazy Hog Farm and Lazy Chick Farm.
Farmers for Free Trade made their last stop in Northeast Pennsylvania on Monday during a two-month tour around the country.
Executive director Brian Kuehl facilitated a roundtable discussion between Pennsylvania agricultural leaders on the opportunities and challenges shaping the state's agriculture amid changing trade conditions. The leaders met at Eckle Farm in Lackawanna County.
Owner Keith Eckle has always been a farmer and served on many state and national farm organizations.
He said that in his time, many things had changed.
“But the need for free and fair trade has never changed,” Eckle said.
'Farm Bill 2.0'
Farmers for Free Trade works to elevate the importance of trade for U.S. agriculture and to help both the public and Congress understand why trade is so important for farmers.
On Monday, they had an audience with a sitting congressman. U.S. Representative Rob Bresnahan, a Republican who represents Pennsylvania’s 8th congressional district, joined the discussion.
Bresnahan is expected to be back in Washington, D.C., but the government is still shut down.
"I think it's really important that we have meetings and gatherings like this as we work towards a Farm Bill 2.0, help me take a message back to Washington,” he said.
The Farm Bill sets the national policy for agriculture, food and related programs. The most recent bill was passed in 2018 and has been extended several times. It expired on Sept. 30.
Bresnahan is working on new legislation to support food banks, farmers and lay the groundwork for the next nationwide agricultural bill. That’s what he refers to as “Farm Bill 2.0.”
Farmers share struggles
Kuehl first asked how Pennsylvania agriculture is doing this year and how trade has impacted the farmers.
“Overall, when you think about the economy in Pennsylvania and Ag, there's a lot of hurt going on,” Hoffman said.
The farmers say the cost of supplies keeps going up, while the price of commodities is going down. Farmers are struggling with debt, and multi-generational farms are going out of business.
"As far as what's impacting Pennsylvania dairy farmers, I think we all have felt aspects of inflation that is related to the lack of free trade, some tariffs, some some other factors, but that increase in inflation has just been very impactful on the business planning of our dairy farms,” said Dave Smith, executive director, Pennsylvania Dairymen’s Association.
Those factors make growing their businesses hard, Smith said.
"The challenges that are facing agriculture right now are very much a concern to all of our rural communities, because the farms they support, our local hardware stores, they support our local feed mills. They support all these ancillary industries that rely on our farmers,” added Matt Espenshare, PA State Grange president.
Neighbors to the north and south
Kuehl asked about trade with Mexico and Canada. Mexico is the largest export destination for U.S. agricultural products and Canada is number two, he said.
The United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) is a free trade agreement. Kuehl said Farmers for Free Trade wants to see that agreement, which replaced NAFTA, stay in place. It’s currently up for review.
“We should be saying yes, we're going to keep USMCA,” he said.
Mexico, Canada and China account for nearly one-half of all U.S. experts, said Smith.
The farmers agree that continued trade with the U.S. neighbors to the north and south is important, but so is trade with other countries.
“We have to continue to open more markets. There's only so much we can get to Mexico. There's only so much we can get to Canada,” Hoffman said.
Exporting backups
Historically, the U.S. has been a primary soybean supplier to China, according to the American Soybean Association. China stopped buying soybeans from the U.S. in May because of the Trump administration's tariffs. Negotiations are ongoing.
"We built a place to where we have such strong production, and then when there's a blip, like China quits buying soybeans, the backup happens very, very quickly," Hoffman said. "And how do you respond to that? Like you already have the crop in the ground, right? So we got to pivot. We've got to find another market. We've got to find another opportunity."
In the U.S., pork is exported to about 100 markets, said Courtney Gray, executive director, PA Pork Strategic Investment Program.
"And trade barriers continue to be a challenge for that market, for U.S. pork,” Gray said.
Gray wants to open trade with more Asian countries.
“Partners like Japan and South Korea, especially those that find products in pork that are delicacies in their market, but not mainstream processed products here in the US, really help to prop up the US. Pork production,” she said.
Hoffman talked about the barriers to get products into another country. After the meeting, he said that to get his pork into other countries, that would take him making connections in those other countries or working with trade organizations.
"It's a partnership. It's folks working together in all industries, promoting each other, doing everything we can to break down the barriers, to make sure that at the end of the day, when we do export our product, we get a fair price for it.”
Sentiments from around the country
Kuehl shared with the group what he heard from farmers around the country. He said that the federal government needs to limit the uncertainty.
"So much of what we're facing right now is ‘okay, we're going to have a tariff on this country. No, we're not. We're going to have percent here, now it's 15%,” he said. “Business can't, an industry can't plan. We need certainty. We need stability, and we need it. We need to move through this process.”
The tour finished in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday.
