$15 Billion in Promises to Farmers in the Final Weeks: Diesel Money, Rancher and Fisherman Loans, and a Midterm Map
The Associated Press counted more than $15 billion in agriculture pledges from the Trump administration in the run-up to Tuesday's vote - most of it aimed at the diesel and fertilizer costs squeezing producers, Florida fishermen included.
President Donald Trump's administration has made $15 billion worth of promises to agriculture producers in the last few weeks before the midterm elections, the Associated Press reported on Monday - initiatives intended to help offset the higher diesel and fertilizer costs farmers have endured largely because of his tariffs and the war in Iran. On top of the $15 billion, the Agriculture Department plans $13.8 billion in safety-net payments for eligible producers for the 2025 crop year, covering shortfalls on crops such as corn, soybeans, wheat and rice.
More than half of the new money - over $8 billion - is a one-time payment plan for farmers buffeted by soaring diesel prices; the department says it will release more details this month, and it is not yet clear when the money will reach the farmers who burn diesel in trucks, tractors and combines. At least $5 billion was announced in guaranteed loans for ranchers and fishermen, $1.8 billion in payments for conservation-program participants, $573 million for fertilizer manufacturing projects and $57 million to expand meat processors, and on Thursday the agency said it would buy up to $472.5 million in agricultural commodities for charitable programs. The money comes primarily from the Agriculture Department and does not need immediate congressional approval.
Gregg Ibendahl, a farm management specialist at Kansas State University, told the AP he estimates the payments will "more than cover the increase in fuel costs" and could help with high fertilizer prices. Diesel averaged $6.32 a gallon on Friday, down slightly from its September peak but 70 percent higher than a year ago. The pledges arrived alongside a sharpened rural campaign push, including the president's stops in Iowa and Kansas on Sunday, two days before the election.
For Florida, the package is not abstract: the guaranteed-loan money expressly includes fishermen, and diesel and fertilizer costs run through the state's citrus groves, cattle operations and sugar fields. The Florida Desk will follow the department's November payment-rate details for what Florida producers can actually claim.
