Pennsylvania farmers view President Trump's trade war as a "double-edged sword"
President Donald Trump's trade war with China could put American farmers right in the middle of the fight. In Pennsylvania, farming is still one of the largest industries in the state.
Burd Farm in Georges Township, Fayette County, has hundreds of acres with several crops, including soybeans and corn. Two of the biggest products on the world market. Richard Burd feels the tariffs could help move farms like his in the right direction.
His distributor has had to start selling to other markets beyond just China with his crops. Burd adds that China is not always the fairest trading partner.
"Kind of diversify the people that are buying and hopefully getting a better and safer buyer for our stuff," he said at his farm.
For farmers like Rick Telesz in Volant, Lawrence County, he says that's a double-edged sword. When you lose a customer, it can be very hard to get them back. You don't want to break a revenue source. We spoke with Telesz as he was out on the road.
"I don't know where this is going to play out and how it's going to end up, but it's putting a tremendous burden and stress on family farms," Telesz said.
These tariffs come at a time when the price for soybeans and corn is significantly down. Both Burd and Telesz say profit margins are slim to none in some cases with these crops. Everything farmers need to run their fields has not gone down in cost.
"Fertilizer, fuel, herbicides, machinery, all have gone up," Burd said.
Telesz said this could ultimately force farmers out of the business.
"If they can't make a return on their product where they can invest in new equipment, their equipment breaks down and they are out of business," Telesz said.
According to the Office of the United States Trade Representative, PA exported more than $400 million of soybeans and corn in 2022, the latest data the office had.
