In a sea of not great news,
Wisconsin farmers could see a boost
after President Donald Trump met
with China this week.
As a result of the talks, China
promised to restart buying
U.S. Soybeans after halting
such purchases in May.
Wisconsin farmers, waylaid by trade
disputes, could at least see a
better market for soybeans.
But they're still facing trade
trouble for beef, rising costs,
and for the many farmers who as
small business owners depend on
affordable Care Act health plans,
hikes, and premiums.
We pick up now with Brad Olson,
President of the Wisconsin Farm
Bureau. Thanks a lot for being here.
Thank you for having me.
So all told, what kind of headwinds
are Wisconsin farmers facing
right now?
Well, just increasing costs,
fertilizer, feed, all of those are
increasing at a time when,
other than the price of fat cattle,
everything is down.
Corner down, beans have been down,
milk is not good.
So lots of headwinds out
there. On the other hand,
farmers have faced this in the past
and are resilient.
Are the input costs for
things like fertilizer and feed
having to do with trade?
Not so much,
certainly a little bit.
I mean, if you, you know, from
the potash side of things, 80%
of our potash comes from Canada.
So we certainly want good stable
trade with Canada on that side
to keep the pot ash
prices normal.
How welcome is the news that China
will start buying soybeans again?
Oh, extremely welcome.
I mean, a big deal, not just in
Wisconsin, but across the nation to
get China back, you know, maybe not
this year, but the next two years of
buying what they have in the past is
exceptional.
Good news for soybean farmers and
all farmers across the nation.
Is it expected that China will
buy enough to kind of offset
that country not buying since
May?
Well, they're going to buy roughly
12 million metric
tons this year, which isn't
going to make up the whole
difference, but at the end of the
day, it's going to make a
big difference.
And moving forward to 26 and 27,
with that promise to buy back to the
same level that they had been,
is certainly going to help
agriculture out in the long run
here.
What about beef producers in
Wisconsin with President Trump's
plan to quadruple imports from
Argentina?
Is that a significant impact in this
state?
I guess time will tell,
certainly it's the first time
that beef producers have been
profitable in a number of years, so
we're certainly concerned and
keeping an eye on that on
a very regular basis.
As to this government shutdown
and the fight over Affordable
Care Act enhanced premiums
or enhanced tax credits,
how dependent are Wisconsin farmers
on kind of marketplace plans?
Somewhat. Fortunately, Wisconsin
Farm Bureau is again this year going
to try and get the Tennessee health
plan passed here in Wisconsin,
which would help
farmers considerably that
are in that in between.
Maybe don't are not eligible for
the Affordable Health Health Care
Act, but at the same point can't
afford regular health care from,
you know, companies across the state
or the nation.
So again, we're working on trying
to find that middle ground where we
can help members out.
And what does that health plan
offered by the
Farm Bureau do?
I mean, what is that plan?
It's just a health
plan that not necessarily insurance,
but a plan that is
typically, like I say, it isn't
for people who are necessarily on
the affordable healthcare, but
also people who cannot necessarily
afford it.
It finds them people that are in
between, right?
And so that would require
legislation from the
state.
It would require legislation from
the state and being signed by the
governor. 14 other states around the
nation have it.
And what are the prospects
for that?
Hmm
A little better in 50-50, I think.
Those aren't bad odds, really,
but no, no, on
another kind of hot topic, the
2025 Farm Bill, the
largest piece of which is snap,
which we're all talking about right
now, how is work on that
progressing?
Well, there again, we need not just
for SNAP benefits, but everybody
across the nation.
Farmers, everyone in day-to-day
businesses, we need to get the
federal government back up and going
again.
You go to the airport, the TSA
people aren't necessarily being
paid.
We need those people to be paid.
And hopefully this week we'll
see some movement and get the
government open again and get those
people paid as well as get
recipients of federal programs
taken care of.
You know, another issue that has
been discussed a lot in the
ag world is labor
and labor shortages.
Is that something that Wisconsin
farmers are increasingly
struggling with?
Uh, yeah, I, I think so,
you know, it's, um,
agriculture is a labor dependent
business.
Um, and, and so it has always
been that, and we've just, you know,
uh, rural America, rural Wisconsin
is shrinking. So we don't have
those, those neighbors
and those other farm kids to,
to necessarily fill those jobs.
We leave it there.
Brad Olson, thanks very much for
your time.
Thank you very much.
All right. Thank you.
You too. Have a good day.
Bye.