California Almond Estimates and Trump Defends Chinese Ag Land Purchases
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson with your Agribusiness Update.
**For decades, experts have done their best to estimate the size of California’s almond crop prior to harvest.
While producing most of the world’s supply, the global market rises and falls with the fate of the Central Valley crop.
Expectations of a shortage can stoke competition among buyers and raise prices, while a large crop forecast can achieve the opposite.
The expansion of California’s almond industry made it harder to forecast statewide yields.
**President Trump is defending Chinese purchases of U.S. farmland during his visit to Beijing.
Speaking with Fox News, Trump said removing Chinese buyers from the market would negatively impact farm real estate prices.
The comments marked a notable shift from Trump’s earlier hardline position on Chinese ownership of U.S. agricultural land and drew renewed attention from farmers and national security advocates concerned about foreign investment in farmland near military installations.
**Recent studies by North Dakota State University revealed that U.S. tariffs and resulting retaliatory actions are driving significant economic losses for American agriculture, heavily impacting exports and raising farming costs.
The study found retaliatory tariffs from China caused roughly $15 billion in annual losses for American
agricultural exports.
China’s embargo on U.S. soybeans alone accounts for almost half the total.
It’s also caused significant damage to beef, poultry, and cotton exports.
