The trade war with China is not even nine months old, and the effects are already being felt by the Washington farm economy.  According to a study conducted by the Washington Center on International Trade, the overall Washington economy has lost hundreds of millions of dollars because of the trade war, and farmers have been some of the hardest hit.  WCIT’s Lori Otto Punke said dairies, apples, cherries, wheat, seafood, and timber, all top exports from the Evergreen state, have been targeted during the trade war.

 

“Particularly with fragile industries like apples, peaches, pears, cherries, and when I say fragile, what I mean by that, they have such a short window to export.”

 

Punke said the immediate ramifications of the trade war are very clear, what’s not as clear, the long-term consequences.  She noted supply chains are about relationships, and when the product is no longer available, it can take years, to rebuild a relationship that was destroyed in a matter of months.

 

“If the trade war was suspended tomorrow, building those relationships back up isn’t an easy process.  So we know that cultivating relationships takes time, and building that up takes even more time, and building it back up after a relationships like this will take even more time.”

 

A recent study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce suggests the trade war could cost the American economy over $1 trillion over the next decade.

 

 

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

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