Black US farmers brace for impact amid tariffs turmoil

By Kat Stafford and Kia Johnson

BOYDTON, Virginia, April 30 (Reuters) - As a fourth generation farmer, Virginia resident John Boyd Jr typically spends the busy spring season prepping his land to plant sweet corn seeds and soybeans.

But Boyd, the president and founder of the National Black Farmers Association, has also been busy fielding inquiries from Black farmers anxious about the impact of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs.

“The farmers are calling and saying,‘Hey, Boyd, should I plant my crop, man? This ain't looking good for us. Have you heard anything from anybody where we can get some emergency loans?” Boyd recounted in an interview, as he worked on his farm. “And it's frustrating because the answer is no. We don't have the resources to help them.”

In several interviews, agricultural sociologists, public health and government and governance experts and advocates said the impact of Trump's tariffs could be more acute for Black farmers, given their historical challenges in accessing capital, retaining ownership of their land and the enduring legacy of decades of discrimination and racism.

Groups representing U.S. farmers and food processors have been mostly critical of Trump's tariffs on imports, which analysts say will hike prices for consumers. The American Farm Bureau Federation, the leading farm lobby, said the tariffs threaten farmers' competitiveness and could cause long-term damage.

“Everything about trade and tariffs over the past few months has just been so erratic that it is tough for businesses, for farmers, for analysts to know what's gonna happen, not only in the long term, but even from day to day or even hour to hour,” said Bill Winters, a Georgia Tech University sociology professor.

Black farmers today account for less than 2% of all U.S. farmers, a share that has significantly dropped over the past century, according to a 2024 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. In 1920, 41.4 million acres were operated by Black farmers. By contrast, a USDA Census of Agriculture data report found Black producers operated 32,700 farms and ranches, covering about 5.3 million acres in 2022.

In a March 2021 website post affirming the agency's commitment to civil rights, former USDA secretary Tom Vilsack said the government needed to acknowledge the "USDA’s history of systemic discrimination via policies and programs designed to benefit those with access, education, assets, privilege rather than for those without." He pledged to root out systemic racism and barriers experienced by Black farmers, socially disadvantaged farmers, and poor areas in rural America.

The post appears to have since been removed from the USDA's site. Since returning to the White House, Trump has spent the past 100 days aggressively dismantling diversity -- and civil rights -- initiatives across the federal government.

“We spend most of our time just trying to survive on what's thrown at us,” Boyd said, noting that unequal access has existed regardless of who occupies the Oval Office. But he said farmers are concerned about the ripple effects of dismantling programs aimed at remedying discrimination.

'ACTION TO SUPPORT FARMERS'

Farming accounts for more than a third of U.S. land. While the number of farms is dwindling and their average size growing, family-owned and operated farms still account for the vast majority of land farmed, according to USDA.

A USDA spokesperson said that over the last four years, the Biden administration left the USDA "in complete disarray and dysfunction."

"President Trump is taking strong action to support farmers by quickly rolling out programs like the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program that provides $10 Billion in direct assistance to producers," the USDA said in a statement. "USDA does not discriminate and single out individual farmers based on race, gender, or political orientation."

The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act signed by former president Joe Biden in 2021, in part set aside billions in debt relief to help socially disadvantaged farmers -- and to address the USDA's history of discrimination.

But, the program was repealed following lawsuits filed by white farmers. A subsequent race-neutral program was passed through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.

“With tariffs right now, from a Black farmer's perspective, it really doesn't affect us because we have been shut out for 100 years,” said Corey Lea, a Tennessee farmer and advocate.

Keon Gilbert, a Brookings Institution governance studies fellow and Saint Louis University public health professor, said Black farmers fear they won't receive payments awarded as part of the legislation. The tariffs, he said, could compound an already fragile situation.

“What could possibly happen is we may see a continued decline in Black farms. Many of those farmers have smaller properties, smaller land, and that may all just go away," Gilbert said.

Meanwhile, Boyd will continue to fight to preserve his family's multi-generational farming legacy.

"By the grace of God, I'm going to plant my crops," Boyd said.