Nunn, Ernst urge administration to act amid soybean market crisis tied to China standoff

Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn and U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst are calling on the Trump administration to move swiftly to restore U.S. access to foreign soybean markets and bolster domestic demand as farmers face tumbling prices, full grain bins and growing uncertainty amid escalating trade tensions with China.

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In a letter sent Monday to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, Nunn and Ernst — joined by Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis. — urged federal action to suspend retaliatory tariffs, prioritize soybean market talks with Beijing and finalize key domestic fuel policies.

“Right now, bins are full, prices are underwater, and the ongoing government shutdown is adding even more uncertainty to an already tough situation,” Nunn said in a statement. “That’s leaving producers flying blind and asking a simple question: What’s the plan to fix this?”

Iowa’s farm economy caught in trade crossfire

The letter comes as China — historically the largest buyer of U.S. soybeans — has halted purchases in retaliation for Trump administration tariffs, instead turning to competitors like Brazil.

Prices have dropped below break-even levels for many producers, according to Nunn’s office, leaving farmers “without clear guidance on where markets are heading in the short and long term.”

The letter urges the administration to make U.S. soybeans a top priority in ongoing U.S.–China negotiations, remove retaliatory tariffs, expand export opportunities for soybean meal, and issue guidance on the Section 45Z clean fuel production credit and nationwide, year-round E15 availability.

“Our producers don’t expect Washington to guarantee their success, but they do expect a level playing field,” the letter states. “Right now, retaliatory tariffs and unresolved trade frictions have priced U.S. soybeans out of the market, while competitors fill the gap.”

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Devin Mogler, president and CEO of the National Oilseed Processors Association, said the soybean processing industry has poured more than $6 billion into expanding capacity, but needs certainty on federal biofuel rules to ensure it can run at full strength.

Iowa Soybean Association President Tom Adam said prolonged trade tensions risk turning the United States into a “secondary rather than preferred supplier” of soybeans.

“Strengthening trade must go hand in hand with expanding the use of homegrown energy,” Adam said.

Trump’s Asia trip renews hopes for soybean talks

The push comes as President Donald Trump is on a five-day Asia trade trip expected to include talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea on Wednesday. Posting on X (formerly Twitter), Nunn wrote that Trump’s trip had already “delivered historic wins for Iowa agriculture,” citing new market access in Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, told Radio Iowa he’s encouraged by the progress Trump is making during his Asia tour, but is uncertain whether China will agree to resume buying American soybeans.

“It would still give a great morale boost to farmers if they knew that China is going to be back in the market for our soybeans,” Grassley said.

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The administration is reportedly eyeing several billion dollars in aid to farmers, with Trump saying he’d like to use tariff-generated tax revenue to provide relief for producers. The potential aid package is on hold due to the federal government shutdown.

U. S. agricultural exports fell by more than $27 billion during Trump’s first term amid a trade war with China, prompting the U.S. Department of Agriculture to send $23 billion to farmers to help offset losses. Of the $27 billion loss, soybeans represented 71 percent of the drop, according to the USDA.

Nunn and Ernst said they’re pressing the administration to give farmers the “clear signals, not continued uncertainty” they need to plan ahead.

Asked whether she continues to support President Trump’s tariff strategy amid ongoing trade tensions with China, Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson defended Trump’s approach and praised his efforts to boost agricultural exports.

“(President Trump has) been working non-stop since he was elected to put America first again on the world stage, and it takes some time to turn around four years of America last ag policy,” Hinson, of Marion, told reporters during a press call Tuesday. “I think his trip really symbolizes what the President's commitment is to American workers and American farmers.”

Hinson said conditions for soybean farmers are improving, citing reports that China may resume large purchases, and pledged to keep working with the administration to expand market access and pursue new trade deals.

She contrasted Trump’s record of securing multiple new trade deals with that of Democratic former President Joe Biden, whom she accused of failing to enforce a U.S.-China trade agreement and keeping in place tariffs enacted during Trump’s first term.

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