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Iowa ag secretary Naig: ‘Trade aid’ is not farmers’ first choice

Iowa ag secretary Mike Naig says, given a choice, most farmers would choose better access to markets over ‘trade aid’ from the federal government.

“But in recognition of the fact that our markets are being impacted by trade uncertainty, I think it may very well make sense to have a trade assistance package much like we saw last year with the Market Facilitation Program,” Naig says. “We don’t want to be in this situation, but we do need to help our farmers bridge through this difficult time.”

President Trump says the U.S. will use 15 billion dollars collected from Chinese tariffs to help U.S. farmers and has asked the USDA to develop a trade aid plan.