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Trade aid update: USDA says final decision pending

The Under Secretary of Farm Production and Conservation at the USDA says conversations are still happening about trade aid.

Richard Fordyce tells Brownfield…

“It’s going to be a well informed decision based on data that we have access to related to a whole bunch of things, whether that’s, you know, trade activity, prices, you know all that sort of thing that comes through the Chief Economist’s office.”

The Trump administration previously said more details will be released about trade aid once the government shutdown ends and Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden recently told reporters the dynamics have changed since the end of September.

Kentucky farmer Caleb Ragland with the American Soybean Association says any aid should help farmers overcome the lost revenue and lost market opportunities.

“While it’s good to see, the framework that came out with China, there’s a lot of uncertainty still, it’s not written in stone.”

Brownfield interviewed Ragland and Fordyce at the 2025 NAFB Convention in Kansas City, Missouri.