Indiana corn and soybean farmers call on state congressional delegation to address tariff tensions

HENDRICKS COUNTY, Ind. — Thursday, several Indiana farmers said they were relieved to hear President Donald Trump decided to pump the brakes on Canadian and Mexican tariffs until early April.

Despite Trump’s pause, local farmers still have concerns.

”I don’t think either side wins when we’re in a trade war,” said David Hardin, a corn and soybean farmer based in Hendricks County.

Hardin said he met with Mexican importers at the country’s largest meat expo this week. According to Hardin, several importers who normally look to buy U.S. agricultural products have put doing so on hold.

“We were definitely getting a sense of apprehension as far as people not knowing what the future was going to look like,” Hardin said.

In response to tariff tensions, the Indiana Corn Growers Association (ICGA) and the Indiana Soybean Alliance (ISA) called on the state’s congressional delegation this week to address the issue.

”Mexico is an extremely important market for our products,” Steve Howell with the ICGA/ISA said. “The concerning thing is that it’s not fully settled — that’s where we’d like to see this.”

”Certainly, tariffs are a concern for agriculture,” Congressman Jim Baird (R-Indiana) said.

According to Rep. Baird, tariffs serve as tools President Trump can use to negotiate better deals with the United States’ largest trading partners.

”We hope they’re short-term and we can move into some kind of a negotiated agreement,” Rep. Baird said.

Congressman Marlin Stutzman said he expects additional fluctuations and pauses on tariffs as Mexico and Canada make progress on securing their borders to the president’s liking.

”I think that we’ll probably continue to see a pattern like this as they make progress, those tariffs will be delayed,” Rep. Stutzman said.

But if the tariffs are reinstated, and stay in effect for too long, Hardin said that could mean fewer farmers and less competition, leading to higher prices at the grocery store.

”These are issues that affect the livelihood of thousands of Indiana farmers, but also affect the pocketbooks of future consumers, Hardin said.

Mexico is Indiana’s No. 1 market for corn, pork and poultry exports. In 2022, corn and soybean exports combined brought roughly $4 billion to Indiana’s economy.