Oklahoma farmers would rather sell their commodities than receive government payments, Oklahoma Farm Bureau President Rodd Moesel said in an interview with KFOR News Channel 4 on Monday.
Last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced $4.7 billion in payments to provide relief to farmers affected by retaliatory tariffs during President Trump’s ongoing trade negotiations. The USDA also will purchase $1.2 billion in affected commodities and provide $200 million for promoting U.S. agricultural commodities in foreign markets.
“We want to be selling our product, we don’t want government payments,” he said. “We’re appreciative for the short-term effort but like with any government program, the cost to administer these programs is so high that the real answer is being to answer our product all over the world.”
Moesel said many countries have targeted agricultural commodities in response to tariffs imposed by President Trump, causing commodity prices to drop significantly.
Eligible corn, cotton, dairy, hog, sorghum, soybean and wheat producers can apply to receive aid through the Market Facilitation Program on Tuesday, Sept. 4.
The Market Facilitation Program rates for the current payment period are:
- Soybeans: $1.65 per bushel
- Sorghum: $0.86 per bushel
- Wheat: $0.14 per bushel
- Cotton: $0.06 per pound
- Corn: $0.01 per bushel
- Dairy: $0.12 per cwt
- Hogs: $8 per head
Applications are available online at farmers.gov/mfp and may be submitted in person at your local USDA Farm Service Agency, by email or by mail.
