Agriculture secretary touts confidence as farmers face crisis
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U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins in Rogers, Arkansas, on Monday. Photo: Worth Sparkman/Axios
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said Monday that the USDA is evaluating whether farmers may need economic assistance this fall.
Why it matters: Family farms are facing their worst crisis since the 1980s, both Rollins and Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders told a crowd.
- Surging input costs, high interest rates, oversupply and stalled trade are squeezing profit margins — threatening both livelihoods and rural economies.
The big picture: Rollins and Sanders warned that foreign land ownership and Biden-era trade failures threaten both farm survival and national security.
- "In Arkansas alone, we're expecting a $1.45 billion shortfall in 2025," Sanders told a group gathered in Rogers for the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA). She characterized Arkansas farmers as experiencing "desperation."
- "For the third year in a row, most farms rely on off-farm income just to survive," Rollins said later.
Context: Rollins stopped in Arkansas on her way to broker deals with U.S. ethanol producers and the United Kingdom under a new trade agreement, she said.
- The meeting convened in Arkansas because its secretary of agriculture, Wes Ward, is serving as NASDA's 2024-25 president.
State of play: Both Sanders and Rollins positioned President Trump and his administration as aligned with farmers, contrasting that support with what they cast as neglect.
- Their comments were largely aimed at rallying agricultural confidence while acknowledging acute near-term pain.
- Neither offered a clear, immediate fix beyond short-term aid.
During questions, a reporter quoted an Arkansas farmer who said the only short-term solution was "send us a check." Rollins acknowledged that assistance is likely part of what USDA is preparing to roll out in the coming weeks.
What they're saying: "Congress has already made a commitment to make sure that we are building that bridge until we get to the next chapter for American markets," Rollins said.
The bottom line: Both touted Trump administration relief programs, new trade deals and biofuel expansion as efforts to stabilize the farm economy, though many changes won't take effect until 2026.