Perdue: Rural Economy Is Fragile

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue told Congress Tuesday tough times will likely continue on the farm for the next couple of years, but the administration and lawmakers can act to ease some of that pain.

“The state of the rural economy is fragile, it obviously depends on some things you all will struggle with in this environment, in the budget during this time period.”

That, he said, makes it harder to boost the farm safety net in a new farm bill. Perdue says tough times are expected to continue, complicated by trade spats with countries like China.

“We know that just with the mention of China, considering anti-dumping and duty taxes, the cash price on Sorghum dropped a dollar which was 25% just yesterday on the cash prices.”

Perdue also focused much of his time on trade topics, including progress on NAFTA discussions, and the possibility of the U.S. returning to TPP.

If you have a story idea for the Washington Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail gvaagen@cherrycreekradio.com