Soybean and pea farmers scramble as China and European trade missions cancel visits

[DonViejo]

Source: CNBC

It is a bumper crop for soybeans this year, and trade tariffs already have added pressure on prices of other crops.

Soybean farmers in North Dakota were expecting 16 trade delegates from China to visit from Sept. 17 to 20, and hoped for big orders to come out of the meetings. A week ago, they heard the visit was canceled.

The trade fears eased somewhat last week after China said it would hold a fresh round of trade talks in Washington later this month, but the damage may already be done to this year's crop exports.

Lori Ann LaRocco | @loriannlarocco
Published 1 Hour Ago Updated 59 Mins Ago

Delegations from China, India, Italy and Spain that were supposed to meet with North Dakota's bean, pea and lentil growers in September have canceled their visits because of trade tensions.

The moves come at a crucial time for American farmers, who use these annual visits to fill orders right after the harvest and make new business connections.

A bumper crop has weighed on soybean prices this year, and trade tariffs already have added pressure on prices of other crops. Growers haven't seen prices this low for their dry peas and lentils since 2006 and for their chickpeas since 2003, according to Tim McGreevy, CEO of the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council.

Soybean futures are down 16 percent since April. And growers have seen a 25 percent decline in dry pea prices, a 40 percent fall in lentil prices and a 49 percent drop in chickpea prices.

Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/20/farmers-scramble-as-china-and-european-trade-missions-cancel-visits.html

[ProudMNDemocrat]

1. Will they still support Trump and Republicans?

These farmers who are seeing their incomes and livihoods fall by the wayside because Trump is on this power trip? If they stick by Republicans, say goodbye to the family farmer trying to grab a piece of the American dream as they are taken over by the Big Corporate Farm bloc.

[Afromania]

3. You know they will, for as long as the gop promises it'll get them their brown people next time.

[matt819]

6. I may be wrong. . .

but I believe they will continue to vote republican.

Call it a cult, a national mania, a national delusion. But they can't bring themselves to vote for Democrats because if they do, others - read Black, Hispanic, immigrants, etc. - will get "stuff" that they - the farmers - should be getting. It's irrational, but that's where we are.

If I'm wrong, great. If they choose to stay home, okay. But I'll put money on the likelihood that they'll vote in the same numbers that they have traditionally and will vote straight ticket R.

[Rural_Progressive]

22. As a farmer myself living in a red portion of WA state

I interact with many of the people you're describing.

Nice people if you're a member of their tribe or behave in a way that allows the tribe to accept you.

I don't have a lot of time to read whole books but boy do I enjoy listening to audiobooks whenever possible. Listened to these two recently and in my opinion they do an excellent job of providing very well documented versions of the US history most of us didn't get taught in any of our high school or college classes.

If you truly are interested in understanding why we were bound to end up where we are give these two a read (or listen):

White Trash by Nancy Isenberg
American Nations by Colin Woodard

Once you have a better idea of where we came from it is much easier to understand how we got here.

[matt819]

30. Good book suggestions

I skimmed American Nations when it came out. I think I need to actually read it.

I have White Trash on my mp3 player, along with another couple of dozen non-fiction and hundreds of fiction books. Just when I think I'm ready for the next non-fiction book, I start fiction and get lost in the escapism.

As for where we came from - I think we all have a pretty good idea of where we came from. As the boomers grew up, we knew who we liked and didn't like, though I don't think it went as far as hate and death threats. And the extremists on both ends of the spectrum pretty much kept their own counsel, believing that they really had no chance at a larger following other than their own fringe-y communities. We all got our news from the three networks and the national and local newspapers. And we had the draft, which in some ways (though less than WWII) forced left and right/north and south, and maybe even black/white to play well(ish) together. What changed? Wars fought by volunteers, mostly white and RW, RW billionaires and Fox News, together with the apparent death of shame, and the internet. The rest, as they say, is history. And it ain't pretty.

[luvtheGWN]

31. I read American Nations a few years back.

At that time, I felt this book should be on every high school history curriculum in both Canada and the U.S. I urge everyone here to seek it out.

Thanks for the recommendation re White Trash. Going to see if my library has a copy. If not, Amazon!

[SWBTATTReg]

32. Thanks for posting suggestions...I plan on going to library and reading...nt

[mahina]

39. Thank you

[mahina]

40. Do you see any way to heal this problem?

[Rural_Progressive]

42. Not on the short term I'm afraid

These divisions were baked into this continent from the onset of sustained European colonization. That's part of why understanding the information presented by these authors is so imperative.

I won't live to see it, just turned 66 a couple of weeks ago, but a combination of social media and intermingling of people around the continent could bring about a healing but I do believe that on our current trajectory that process will require a generation or two.

Do we have that kind of time given the multiple "perfect storms" we currently face, stay tuned. One thing I am sure of kids, time to buckle up and hunker down, the ride's going to be a bit bumpy in the short term.

[olegramps]

25. Hope they like soybeans. Soy mush, fried, boiled, raw, rotten, stewed, poached, etc.

Its is grand opportunity for one of those celib cooks to put out a book on how to make soybeans taste like fillet magnon. However, don't expect it to be barbequed because they keep falling threw the grill.

[mitch96]

26. I like soybeans and Edamame

Soybean hummus, is good too. Recently I went to my local supermarket to pick up some of these tasty and healthy morsels. Wait, what??????? The only soybeans I could find in the store were grown in CHINA!!! Now that's just wrong... I snapped off a nasty gram to the store ,Publix and registered my rage... uggh what a faux pas for the store...

m

[bettyellen]

28. A lot of imports these days is due to seasonality. People want X Y and Z when it's not ripe, so...

[mitch96]

37. "so"

when soybeans are not available we buy frozen, or from someplace that does not try to wreck our economy like, like...... Ireland!!!! (joke)

m

[bettyellen]

38. And the supermarket you went to surely had frozen too, right?

We get loads of produce from Mexico and Chile and I don’t think they’re trying to hurt us, I think historically we’ve screwed over lots of Latin America pretty bad.
Shits more complicated than we can imagine.

[mitch96]

41. "Shits more complicated than we can imagine."

Yup, be an informed consumer, read your labels, complain where it's necessary and vote with your wallet... BTW have not gotten a reply from the food store...
m

[Afromania]

2. Was just reading about this and thought about posting.

I hope they are enjoying their product because this is what their pocket full of hate purchased for them at the world store.

[roamer65]

4. Womp womp

Hahahahaha.

[Botany]

5. So how is that Trump vote working out?

Trump: 'We’re going to win so much, you’re going to be so sick and tired of winning'


2016 Vote N. Dakota


Donald J. Trump Republican 216,794 63.0%

Hillary Clinton Democrat 93,758 27.2 %

[iluvtennis]

10. Exactly. They bought the con.

[Botany]

11. Well Hillary was a dyke b***h w/a liberal agenda that had to be stopped.

I hate to generalize but how many N. Dakota farmers are driving their tractors or
working in their barns as they listen to Rush Limbaugh & Sean Hannity? They do
not realize they are being lied to non stop. And despite losing millions of dollars
in sales for their crops how many of them are gonna turn around and vote republican
in the fall?

[Chakaconcarne]

17. I would guess these farmers were doing pretty well under Obama....democrats...

Sucks to be a clueless Republican.

[Botany]

23. Guess what other countries grow soy beans too.

https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/world-leaders-in-soya-soybean-production-by-country.html

[pazzyanne]

27. Lots of dairy farmers play public radio classic music in their barns.

The cows give more and sweeter milk than they do when they have to listen to Fox stations (all talk and no music).

[Crutchez_CuiBono]

13. "You took the donut and put it in your locker, you eat it"

While the rest of us do the push ups ala Full Metal Jacket.

[paleotn]

7. You bought it. You own it

[riversedge]

18. would be good if they sat in their rotten field!s of beans on election day

[paleotn]

24. It will get harvested

And then they get to decide if they sell in a depressed market and cover at least some of their input costs. Or store it and hope for better prices later. Either way, it’s going to be a lean Christmas in farm country

[heaven05]

8. oh well

I just feel for the children, not of voting age and reason. The rest bought this farm....

[workinclasszero]

9. Trump thanks his farm voters

[BumRushDaShow]

12. These are the kind of people

who think they are immune when you warn - Hey, you know if you walk in that field, there are copperheads there and you might run into one and get bit.". They just toss it off as "hyperbole".

[Crutchez_CuiBono]

14. Wheres the Farmers For Trump signs?

[riversedge]

19. I saw several in rural WI during 2018 canvessing. None now but early. Also twitter was

full of those hastags in 2016---well, lots anyway. Not now as far as I can tell.

[Crutchez_CuiBono]

21. hmm.

[sdfernando]

15. North Dakota went for the orange pustule by 63%

So much winning for these guys, I'm sure they can hardly stand it.

Elections have consequences so now you reap what you have sown.

[procon]

16. And they're all making up excuses about Trump's genius plan,

convinced he actually knows what he's doing and isn't just flinging poo.

[GoCubsGo]

20. Bed. Made. Lie.

Although, unfortunately for the rest of us, they're going to be shoving peas and soybean products into our food supply. Be prepared to see "pea protein", soybean oil, and other derived products on your food labels, where they never were before.

[roamer65]

36. Boycott them when possible.

Make these bastards hurt even more.

[CrispyQ]

29. The character of this man was there for all to see before the election,

even if the MSM didn't report on it. He lies, he stiffs his contractors, he doesn't hire Americans, he's a bigot, he sues people who disparage him, he's an ass of epic proportions, it's all about him. If the farmers were truly repentant, they'd vote dem & advocate for others to vote dem. Fuck 'em. I'm just sorry their actions are going to hurt everyone & not isolated to just them.

[SWBTATTReg]

33. Amen! What can we do about the situation that these guys (farmers) are in?

Nothing...as consumers we can refuse to buy their products too, and vote w/ our pocket books. If farmers won't listen to reason or logic, its going to wipe them out...their margins are so narrow (profit) and that's too bad but I don't feel sorry for them ... this was an individual decision on the part of each of them (vote rump) and now they are finding out the great truth, which was in front of them all along...

[Achilleaze]

34. Thanks a diaperload, republicans

for shitting all over America's farmers. Sick.

[rtracey]

35. hmmmm

yeah ok well too bad farmers....

[link:

|]