Washington, D.C. : President Donald Trump has announced a sweeping $12 billion emergency assistance package aimed at stabilizing the American farming sector, which continues to struggle under intensifying U.S.–China trade tensions, global supply chain disruptions, and falling crop sales.
Unveiled during a high-level roundtable at the White House, the initiative—officially titled the “Farm Resilience Act”—directs $8 billion in immediate subsidies to soybean and corn farmers, the groups most severely affected by China’s retaliatory 25% tariffs. Another $4 billion will be invested in critical Midwest agricultural infrastructure, including irrigation modernization and climate-smart upgrades.
Key Features of the Farm Resilience Act
Supports 500,000 family farms facing income declines of up to 15%
$1 billion for climate-resilient seeds and drought-tolerant crop development
Ties subsidies to American-made agricultural equipment, lifting John Deere shares by 10% in early trading
USDA debt relief for more than 100,000 borrowers
Expected to prevent a projected $50 billion rural GDP loss and protect 2 million jobs
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack led negotiations alongside Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall, with Trump declaring, “We’re making farming great again—bigger yields, fewer headaches.”
However, the plan has drawn international and domestic pushback. Chinese Ambassador Xie Feng condemned the package at WTO forums as “subsidized dumping,” while domestic critics including Senator Elizabeth Warren labeled it “corporate welfare” that may disproportionately benefit major agribusiness firms like Cargill rather than the family farmers it prioritizes.
The new aid package arrives amid a 20% drop in U.S. agricultural exports to China since the start of the tariff war in 2018. Trump also suggested upcoming policies to counter rising competition from Indian rice exports.
Despite criticism, the announcement was welcomed across many rural communities, with Iowa farmer Tom Harkin calling it “much-needed breathing room” as winter planting approaches. Environmental groups, meanwhile, argue that additional sustainability requirements should accompany such large-scale federal aid.
With midterm elections approaching, analysts view the Farm Resilience Act as both an economic intervention and a strategic move to reinforce GOP support in rural America.
