“Help, Mr. Trump!” Plead U.S.A Soybean Farmers
Publicado em 28/08/2025
Divulgação
American Soybean Association
Published on August 25th 2025
Agriconscient Show Broadcast by Radio Eldorado Estadão-Brasil
* José LuizTejon
Translated/Copydesk by Teacher Francisco Barbosa Bardhal
The world's largest Agriculture sector, with the highest level of support and subsidies – the American one – is crying “Help!” to President Trump. A formal letter from the American Soybean Association (ASA), the biggest competitor of Brazil, includes a tone of plead on its text: “Mr. President, you've strongly supported farmers, and farmers have strongly supported you. We need your help."
In this appeal, the ASA states: “Soybean producers are under extreme financial pressure. Prices continue to fall, and at the same time, our farmers are paying significantly more for inputs and equipment.”
The president of this agricultural association, Mr. Caleb Ragland, continued:
“U.S. soybean farmers cannot survive a prolonged trade dispute with our largest customer.” The Americans farmers speak of a “Commercial and Financial Precipice", and this brings us to Brazil.
According to the USDA, Brazil produced 42% more soybeans than the United States along 2024 and 2025 and now, meeting all of China’s demand.
Analyses from U.S. sources indicate that Beijing has already contracted record volumes of Brazilian soybeans for the coming months. They warn that the U.S. situation could be worse than during the 2018/19 trade dispute, when annual exports fell by about $9.4 billion.
They state in this document distributed to all public authorities:
“Now, the situation may be even worse, as China shows a willingness to maintain its dependence on the Brazilian supply.”
The U.S. agricultural association urges President Trump in Washington to secure an agreement that reopens the Chinese market either by eliminating retaliatory tariffs or by obtaining specific, targeted import quotas from China.
President Trump recently vociferated on Social Media: “China, buy 4 times more of our American soybeans!” Farmers applauded, of course.
However, the ASA emphasized that no contracts have been signed with the Asian country so far. (source: Estadão Media content).
Therefore, dear readers, what a challenging moment for American farmers!
The world's largest Agribusiness, the United States – where the gross value of total agricultural production alone is 10 times greater than ours, and the size of its GDP about 15 times larger than ours – is now asking its President Trump, the “Emperor of Trade Wars,” to save them from a competitor here in the planet's tropical belt: Brazil, the country where the growth and competitiveness of various agricultural products, including soybeans, didn't rely on any marvelous state program nor extraordinary support from favoured capital. Nor did it have spectacular protection, such as the network that cares for, surrounds, and protects farmers in the United States, with its impeccable logistics, storage, infrastructure, insurance, agrindustrialization, and global diplomacy.
However, there's a sin in the food trade that can never be committed, and once committed, forgiveness is hard to find: It´s called “Trust.”
It´s appropriate to remember here what the Portuguese poet Camões wrote:
“Who engages in Commerce doesn't make War.”
Brazil grew its Agribusiness with blood, sweat, tears, and intelligence through technological and human adaptation to the tropics, I mean tropicalization,
cooperativism, entrepreneurship, and with heroes and heroines who pioneered inhospitable and poor lands.
And here we built what now frightens our biggest competitor, in the eternal words of our late Minister, Mr. Alysson Paolinelli:
“What brought the world to this point was temperate climate Agriculture; from now on, it will be tropical.”
I´m not sure if Trump will be able to gain credibility and trust from the Chinese government, which, in its recent history, has known the price of hunger and has made its food and energy security a non-negotiable principle.
Food doesn't belong to the same bargaining basket as the other wars, such as big tech, chips, and the “Alibabas” marketplaces.
Brazilian mission, Brazilian diplomacy are fundamental to continue being what we have always been: a reliable partner and supplier to the world, independent of the ideological preferences of presidents and their republics, which change over time, but whose nations remain.
And Brazil is the nation of all nations, the greatest human Melting Pot on Earth.
The United States also needs Brazil, just as we need them as well.
The word from now on is no longer just “Multilateralism”; it's Agriconscious, Agricitizenship (www.agricitizenship.com).
Ladies and gentlemen, United States farmers and whom it may concern: We admire you! We're friends, never enemies!
The world needs everyone to achieve together the 17 UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
So, help everyone, Mr. Trump! Stop the Commercial War!
*Prof.Dr.José Luiz Tejon - PhD in Education Universidad de La Empresa/Uruguay; Academic Director Brazil+Tropical Belt Nations at International Agribusiness MBA Audencia France & Fecap Brazil; Master's degree in Art Education and History of Culture - Mackenzie University; Journalist and Publicist - Harvard, MIT and PACE/USA/ Insead in France; Specialization Academic Coordinator of Master's Science Food & Agribusiness Management at Audencia in Nantes/ France, and FECAP/Brazil; Managing Partner at Biomarketing and TCA International; Professional Head at Agri Anefac; Writer, author and co-author of 37 books; Agri Personality Award 2023/ABAG -100 Most Influential People in Agribusiness; Former director of Grupo Estadão, Agroceres and Jacto S/A; 2025 Award Agriworld Group.
