Farmer Aid Held Up Until Shutdown Ends, Rollins Says
- Media Logic Radio
- Oct 10
- 2 min read
By Philip Brasher and Oliver Ward Published on October 10, 2025
The government shutdown must end before the Trump administration will move forward with emergency payments to producers who are struggling with low commodity prices, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said Thursday.
The administration on Sept. 28 transferred $13 billion from the USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation account to fund the aid package but has yet to announce the terms or exact size of the package.
“We’ve got to get the government reopened so that we can move forward on that, and once we do, we’ll be able to move out a significant program to help our farmers,” Rollins said at a Cabinet meeting.
She and President Donald Trump blamed the sluggish farm economy on former President Joe Biden’s inaction, although Rollins alluded to China’s lack of purchases of U.S. commodities since Trump raised tariffs.
“The farm economy is in a very uncertain time, but that isn’t because of the trade negotiations, although certainly the China part is part of that, but we inherited a slew of issues,” Rollins said.
She went on: “We’re moving into an era of rural prosperity, of a golden age for our farmers and rural America. The trade renegotiations and the trade realignment … with the president’s leadership is unlike anything that’s happening in the history of our country. And those who will benefit the most are the original Americans, our farmers and our ranchers,” she said.
Rollins suggested that aid packages weren’t sustainable.
“Long term we have to change this hamster wheel of government,” she said. “We’ve got to ensure the farmers have the market to sell. And it’s a national security issue in on-shoring a lot of the food as well.”
Trump told reporters he would address China’s lack of U.S. soybean purchases when he meets Chinese President Xi Jinping during a gathering of regional leaders in South Korea later this month.
Trump has suggested he could travel to Beijing in early 2026 and host Xi in Washington later in the year. The meetings were discussed when the two leaders spoke last month to facilitate a deal on TikTok’s ownership. But tensions ratcheted up again on Thursday, when Beijing tightened controls around the export of its rare earth materials needed to make lithium batteries and high-tech products.
This article was originally published by Agri-Pulse. Agri-Pulse is a trusted source in Washington, D.C., with the largest editorial team focused on food and farm policy coverage.
