The president of Iowa Farm Bureau is encouraged by reports over the weekend China has agreed to a trade framework that includes purchases of U.S. soybeans.
Brent Johnson grows corn and soybeans in Calhoun County.
“To get to a place where it looks like we’ve got some runway here with conversations with China, our largest soybean buyer, I think it’s going to bode well. And hopefully we’ll have some more clarity and better conversations very shortly in the future.”
He tells Brownfield farmers are looking for places to sell as the U.S. harvests another huge crop.
“We’ve got really pretty record-high input costs, and this erosion of our markets has really been troublesome when it comes to the profitability of corn and soybeans.”
Johnson says the government also needs to drive domestic demand and encourages movement on permanent year-round E15 legislation.
