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When I was growing up, my grandfather often told me: “The best thing about being a farmer is that you are your own boss.” When I asked what’s the worst thing, he would chuckle and say, “Well, that you are your own boss.”
Joking aside, my grandfather’s comments reflect a certain pride in his independence. Farmers know this feeling well, as they are ultimately responsible for their operations, from when to plant crops and how to care for animals, to dealing with periodic floods or a broken fence.
But the path our country is on with respect to farm policy robs farmers of whatever independence they have had, with our politicians allowing food imports to flood markets and drive out producers. While President Donald Trump did not push our nation’s farm economy to the precipice—that process was already well underway—he appears willing to push it off.
Still, there is time to change course by investing in and strengthening markets to help those on the land retain their viability and independence.
Consider our widening agricultural trade deficit—that is, how import values rise as export values fall. To give one example, imported cucumbers made up 90 percent of the market in 2020, up from about 25 percent in the 1970s. Americans are also consuming more tomatoes and grapes from abroad. Overall, about 60 percent of the fruit and up to 35 percent of the vegetables that we consume originate from outside the United States, making our diets subject to the decisions of other governments, foreign conflicts, and faraway weather changes.
The beef we eat is also increasingly coming from other countries. U.S. beef imports from Brazil hit a record 197 million pounds in January 2025, up from seven million in January 2020.
Making matters worse is Trump’s trade war. Corn and soy farmers are seeing their prices crater as China’s retaliatory tariffs make their markets disappear. Cotton prices are dropping for the same reason, as about 85 percent of this crop is destined for export, on which China has slapped a 15 percent retaliatory tariff.
Most farmers still support the President, polls show, with some hoping that tariffs will pay off in the long run. This is not surprising, given that rural people have steadily trended Republican since the 1980s, as gains from globalization appeared to land in cities.
Instead of assuming that farmers will suffer in silence, Trump could dedicate resources to strengthen domestic markets. Instead, his “One Big Beautiful Bill” sets aside just $59 billion for bailouts to struggling farmers. Meanwhile, the bill cut $187 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Our government is dismantling local markets rather than investing in them, while cancelling programs including the Regional Food Business Centers Program and the Emergency Food Assistance Program, which are intended to strengthen food supply chains and provide support to low-income people.
Some hope remains with the so-called Skinny Farm Bill, which is in development and may pass later this fall. This legislation gives Congress another chance to help ailing farmers.
Among the programs that could be saved is the Livestock Owned by Communities to Advance Local (LOCAL) Foods Act, which gives farmers more flexibility in choosing where to process their animals. Another move in the right direction would be reinstating Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling, which would make retailers disclose the origins of milk, dairy, meat, fish, fruits, and vegetables. With this information, consumers could choose domestic products instead of unknowingly buying items of dubious quality from abroad.
Or perhaps we should return to the policy drawing board when it comes to agriculture as some farmer and ally groups propose, calling for restoring nutrition assistance funding, strengthening competition policy, and rethinking the cancellation of programs that help farmers survive.
My grandfather joked about the challenges his independence gave him. But what our government is doing isn’t funny—feeding us food from who knows where and tying our hands by cutting programs that could strengthen local markets. Instead of making America, or our farmers, “great,” Trump is taking away their independence and, in the process, their dignity.
This column was produced for Progressive Perspectives, a project of The Progressive magazine, and distributed by Tribune News Service.