Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said Wednesday “anxiety” over the disagreement in trade policy between the U.S. and China is “legitimate,” but added President Trump has promised to strike a deal that ensures a win for American farmers.
Perdue said farmers should not be concerned about China imposing tariffs against U.S. soybeans, which is the country’s largest soybean customer.
[US soybean growers warn of ‘devastating’ Chinese tariffs on US exports]
“But I talked to the president as recently as last night. And he said, ‘Sonny, you can assure your farmers out there that we’re not going to allow them to be the casualties if this trade dispute escalates. We’re going to take care of our American farmers. You can tell them that directly,'” Perdue told reporters while on a trip through Ohio.
Perdue is in the midst of his third RV tour, in which he and his staff travel for a week through a handful of states to meet local farmers, students, researchers, business owners, and community leaders about their agricultural concerns.
He is currently traveling through Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky. His first trip last August took took him through Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana. The second trip in September included stops in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire.
