On Monday, December 8, 2025, President Donald Trump announced a sweeping $12 billion assistance package for American farmers, pledging the funds as both a lifeline for those battered by trade disruptions and a bridge to long-term agricultural reforms. The move, unveiled at a White House event alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, comes amid mounting concerns over low crop prices, rising production costs, and the lingering effects of trade wars—especially with China.
"I'm delighted to announce this afternoon that the United States will be taking a small portion of the hundreds of billions of dollars we receive in tariffs ... and we're going to be giving and providing it to the farmers in economic assistance. And we love our farmers," Trump declared, according to ABC News. The president emphasized that the aid would come directly from tariff revenue, seeking to reassure both producers and taxpayers about the source of the funds.
The centerpiece of the plan is the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program, which will provide up to $11 billion in one-time direct support for U.S. row crop farmers. Another $1 billion is earmarked for commodities not covered by the main program, with payment timelines and mechanisms still being finalized. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), uniform payments will help offset a portion of losses for the 2025 crop year, covering a wide array of crops: barley, chickpeas, cotton, corn, lentils, oats, peanuts, peas, rice, sorghum, soybeans, wheat, canola, crambe, flax, mustard, rapeseed, safflower, sesame, and sunflowers.
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins underscored the urgency and scope of the program, stating, "The plan we are announcing today ensures American farmers can continue to plan for the next crop year. It is imperative we do what it takes to help our farmers, because if we cannot feed ourselves, we will no longer have a country." Rollins added that the program would serve as a bridge to improvements expected under the forthcoming One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), scheduled for implementation in fall 2026.
The FBA payments are slated for release by February 28, 2026. Eligible farmers are required to ensure their 2025 acreage reporting is accurate by 5 p.m. ET on December 19, 2025, with commodity-specific payment rates to be published by the end of December. USDA officials noted that further program details and guidance would be made available as the rollout proceeds, and they encouraged farmers to reach out with questions or requests for clarification.
The relief package arrives at a moment of acute stress for American agriculture, much of it stemming from the Trump administration’s own trade policies. The ongoing trade war with China, in particular, has hit soybean farmers hard. China, which accounted for $12.64 billion in U.S. soybean purchases in 2024, effectively blocked all imports of American soybeans for much of the 2025 harvest season. This sudden loss of market access forced many U.S. farmers to scramble for alternative buyers and left grain bins brimming with unsold crops.
However, after a high-profile meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in late October, the two countries announced a framework trade agreement. As part of the deal, China committed to buying 12 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans by the end of 2025, and 25 million metric tons annually in 2026, 2027, and 2028—a return to pre-trade war levels. As of early December, China had purchased about 2.2 million metric tons, with White House officials expressing confidence that the full commitment would be met by the end of February 2026, as reported by the BBC.
Despite these positive signals, the damage has been done. Farmers like Mark Legan of Indiana told the BBC that the government aid would "help our bottom line" after months of low prices and razor-thin profit margins. "The problem is still that we have high costs of production," Legan said, pointing to record prices for crop protection chemicals and seeds. "While some markets have opened up, we're still not back to exporting as much ag products as we have in the past."
Brad Smith, a soybean farmer from Illinois, echoed these sentiments, telling the BBC, "None of us really love it, but we're not in a position where we can be turning it down. We hope we can reduce the need for anything like this going forward." Smith noted that, if he received government aid, the money would likely be spent almost immediately to pay off outstanding bills and purchase supplies for the next season.
The new package also comes on the heels of a $20 billion U.S. bailout for Argentina earlier in 2025—a move that angered many American farmers and lawmakers. As China stopped buying U.S. soybeans, it turned to Argentina as an alternative supplier, leading some, like Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, to voice frustration over the U.S. supporting a competitor. "Farmers VERY upset [about] Argentina selling soybeans to China right after USA bail out. Still ZERO USA soybeans sold to China," Grassley wrote in September.
Texas Farm Bureau President Russell Boening praised the administration’s latest move, saying, "Texas Farm Bureau applauds President Trump and his administration for taking decisive action to support America’s farmers during these challenging times. The announcement of $12 billion in Farmer Bridge Assistance Program payments demonstrates a clear commitment to ensuring that agriculture remains strong and resilient in the face of unfair market disruptions and rising input costs." Boening also highlighted the inclusion of Texas farmers in the announcement, noting the presence of Texas Farm Bureau State Director Brian Adamek at the White House event.
Adamek himself remarked, "It was an honor to represent Texas farmers in the West Wing. The FBA Program will help farmers weather current market disruptions and plan for the future with confidence. We appreciate the administration’s commitment to agriculture and the opportunity to have Texas voices at the table."
While the aid has been welcomed as a necessary intervention, many in the farming community see it as a stopgap rather than a cure-all. As Trump himself put it, "The farmers don't want aid. They want to have a level playing field." The hope is that the FBA Program, combined with policy reforms in the works, will allow American agriculture to shift away from reliance on government assistance and toward a more stable, market-driven future.
Looking back, this is not the first time Trump has deployed large-scale support for farmers. During his first term, his administration approved two packages in 2018 and 2019 totaling $28 billion, and later provided $22 billion in 2019 and $46 billion in 2020, the latter including relief tied to the COVID-19 pandemic. The current $12 billion package is described by administration officials as temporary, with the expectation that broader reforms under the OBBBA will provide lasting solutions.
In the meantime, the USDA is urging eligible farmers to prepare their paperwork, monitor updates, and submit any questions regarding the FBA Program as implementation begins. With the 2025 harvest in the rearview mirror and 2026 on the horizon, the agricultural sector is bracing for another year of uncertainty—but, for now, with a bit more breathing room.
