Dec. 8, 2020 - Today’s robust grain trade with China was one of the biggest success stories for the outgoing Trump administration, says Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.

Perdue looked back at his four years as head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and made some tentative predictions about the incoming Biden administration’s task for the next four years.

He spoke in a prerecorded fireside chat with National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) President Randy Gordon presented Dec. 8 during the NGFA’s all-vrtual 2020 Country Elevator Conference.

Gordon is retiring from NGFA in March 2021.

Among Perdue’s remarks:

  • Trade issues: It came as a shock when President Trump threatened to pull out of NAFTA, but it led to an improved agreement between the participants. We reshaped our entire paradigm with China. We resolved more than 50 non-tariff barriers with China during the negotiations. The first quarter 2021 outlook looks like increased grains, and we’d love to continue that. The big gorilla in the room is China’s government structure, which is so much different from ours and has produced issues such as COVID-19, Honk Kong, and others, but we’ve maintained a workable trade environment. My take on the new Biden administration is that he will move slowly on trade and not cancel tariffs abruptly.
  • Conservation Reserve Program (CRP): If we keep to protocol, higher commodity prices will result in more interest in farming the good ground in the CRP and placing more environmentally sensitive land there. In the past, the CRP has been too much of a retirement program for some farmers.
  • The next Farm Bill: Crop insurance should continue to be the primary safety net for farmers. Most honest farmers would prefer to have their income from a profitable crop than a check from the government.
  • Biotech: I’m excited to see all of the projects Silicon Valley is developing for the ag and food sectors. On the other hand, the European governments have gotten their populations to fear their food. We need to communicate with the public to let them know what we’re going and how that will benefit them.
  • Final to do list: We plan to help the incoming crowd at USDA with the transition. While we are elected on a four-year cycle, we still need to govern continuously.
  • Post Cabinet plans: Mary, my wife of 48 years, and I will be returning to Georgia and seeing our 14 grandchildren. We’ll wait for our next opportunity.

Written by Ed Zdrojewski, Grain Journal editor