The Growing Ag Trade Deficit and Declining Farm Income Make the Case for a New Farm Bill
By U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra
There are many reasons to pass the farm bill this year. Prices for corn, soybeans and other commodities have fallen well below producers’ breakeven point; over 100 million birds – including turkeys, broilers and layers – have been infected by bird flu since 2022 and net farm income is estimated to fall by $10.2 billion this year alone.
Inflation also remains a painful tax on our farmers, who already face unnecessary and punitive red tape like Waters of the U.S. and looming expirations on important pro-growth tax provisions in 2025.
All in all, our farmers and producers need Congress to pass the farm bill as soon as possible to deliver relief and certainty to our agricultural community.
Agricultural trade deficit
The newest development underscoring the urgent need to pass the farm bill is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) latest Outlook for U.S. Agriculture Trade.
According to this report, our agricultural trade deficit is projected to reach nearly $43 billion for Fiscal Year 2025.
Soybean and corn exports are estimated to fall by $1.5 billion and $900 million, respectively, while beef exports are expected to drop by $1 billion.
This projection is far worse than USDA anticipated for Fiscal Year 2024, when our agricultural trade deficit was approximated to reach $30 billion, which at the time was only the third instance the nation registered a deficit since 2000.
Thanks to the Biden-Harris administration’s failure to negotiate new trade agreements and hold our trading partners – especially China – accountable for unlawful and unfair tactics, we can expect a fourth year of an agricultural trade deficit.
Funding for ag programs
In May, more than 110 days ago, Republicans on the House Agriculture Committee did our job and passed the farm bill with support from four of our Democratic colleagues.
In addition to strengthening crop insurance, increasing reference prices and investing in agriculture education, our farm bill includes measures to help us close our agricultural trade deficit, open new export markets for American agriculture and build demand for our commodities.
First, we doubled funding for the Market Access Program and the Foreign Market Development Program to establish export markets and build higher demand for American agricultural commodities across the world.
These programs – administered through USDA – have the goal of promoting agricultural products in every corner of the globe so we can compete with countries like Brazil and Argentina which are filling the vacuum created by the Biden-Harris administration’s total lack of export development and trade policy.
Every dollar invested in these initiatives is well worthwhile, helping producers realize $24 in added value for every one dollar invested.
The FRIDGE Act
Second, as the result of my travels across Iowa’s Fourth District and discussions with producers and agribusinesses, I discovered a major barrier to opening new export markets is the shelf life of perishable goods.
Beef, pork, turkey, chicken and other products requiring cold temperatures to prevent spoiling have a significant disadvantage in global markets.
This is why I introduced the Fortifying Refrigeration Infrastructure and Developing Global Exports (FRIDGE) Act, which is included in the farm bill.
This legislation would help build refrigeration infrastructure and make port improvements both domestically and internationally to support the global distribution of perishable American meats and other commodities.
It would also give our country a leg up on other nations as we look to solidify long-term and profitable growth in the agriculture industry through more trading access points and mutual agreements.
Animal health and economic security
Third, our farm bill invests in preventative and response measures to protect farmers and producers from foreign animal disease and includes policies to responsibly support trade continuity in the event of an outbreak.
This two-fold approach promotes animal health and economic security for our producers.
On the one hand, it reauthorizes the three-legged stool of animal health, which includes the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, the National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program and the National Animal Vaccine and Veterinary Countermeasures Bank.
These programs coordinate response efforts and bring federal, state and university animal health labs to prevent and detect disease outbreaks.
On the other hand, the farm bill includes legislation I led – the Safe American Food Exports Act – to ensure a disease outbreak in one part of the country does not impact an unaffected state’s ability to export agricultural goods.
This mechanism guarantees most agricultural trade can continue uninterrupted and maintain important revenue streams for our farmers.
For more than 110 days, Republicans have pleaded with Democratic colleagues in the Senate to release the text of their farm bill and work with us to deliver for American agriculture.
The USDA’s latest outlook on our agricultural trade deficit should be another wake-up call for lawmakers to put politics aside and pass the farm bill this year.
Our farmers and producers are counting on us to do our jobs so they can continue to do theirs – feed and fuel our country and the world.
Rep. Randy Feenstra represents Iowa’s Fourth District and serves on the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Agriculture Committee. This opinion column was originally published in AgriPulse on Sept. 17.
