Overview
- USDA undersecretary Richard Fordyce said the department does not plan additional emergency assistance beyond the $12 billion package, citing budget limits and existing authorities.
- $11 billion of the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program is directed to row-crop producers, but growers say roughly $50 per acre in one-time payments falls short of needs.
- The American Farm Bureau estimates $34.6 billion in crop-farmer losses this year before insurance, and filings are projected to exceed 1,000 farm bankruptcies, with Arkansas the hardest hit.
- Soybean producers remain most exposed after years of reduced Chinese buying, with a pledge to purchase 12 million metric tons still uncertain and Brazil supplying more of China’s demand.
- The EPA is expected to raise renewable fuel requirements for 2026 and 2027, a potential demand boost for biofuels that farm economists say could help but does not resolve trade-related pressures.