Bracing for the potential for another bruising trade war with its largest customer, the Wisconsin Soybean Association (WSA) continues to prioritize diversifying markets and searching for new trading partners.  

The mission starts with having a seat at the policy table, both closer to home and in the nation’s capital.  

During a whirlwind visit to Washington, D.C., as part of the American Soybean Association’s (ASA) board meetings and Hill Visits, four Wisconsin farmers and Wisconsin Soybean Program Executive Director Adam Kask carved out time to visit with USDA leaders and trade officials from the Moroccan Embassy.   

WSA Treasurer Matt Rehberg, who had never visited a foreign embassy in his three previous trips to D.C., said the experience was a bit intimidating at first.  

“It was really interesting,” Rehberg told Brian Winnekins of WRDN Radio. “The people were very nice and open to talks.”  

During the meeting, the groups discussed trade opportunities via the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System. The U.S. and Morocco have a free trade agreement, and Morocco is a large exporter of phosphate fertilizer, along with serving as a gateway to North Africa. Morocco has a need for high-quality soymeal for a growing livestock industry, and the U.S. is ready to supply the demand. 

“One of things we can offer is a good, clean, safe product that’s better than a lot of the competitors we have around the world,” Rehberg said. “Their animal feed industry recognizes that.”  

Earlier in the week, ASA’s economic and policy teams forecasted a potential repeat of the 2018-2020 trade war with China, which could prove devastating to Wisconsin’s soybean producers. In 2023, China purchased over $18 billion in whole soybeans from the U.S.  

Along with urging legislators to pass a new Farm Bill – which in its current form in the House would expand the farm safety net and provide increases in trade promotion programs – Wisconsin farmers explained to legislative leaders how tariffs would hurt U.S. soybean farmers.  

“It’s very important we protect trade with China, and that’s a message we shared with our legislators on the Hill,” said Tanner Johnson, who, along with Don Lutz, represents Wisconsin on ASA. “We’re trying to open up new markets and find new uses, but obviously the China market is very difficult to replace.”  

Wisconsin farmer leaders visited the offices of Rep. Derrick Van Orden and Sens. Ron Johnson and Tammy Baldwin. During the Hill Visit, growers managed to endure the hottest stretch of temps in D.C. since the 1930s.  

“Beyond it being incredibly hot, we had great visits on the Hill,” Johnson said. “We have great support from our legislative leaders and had really constructive conversations with their staffers.”  

WSA also underscored the need to support soy in biofuels tax credits and explained how the soy checkoff benefits the state’s farm economy by creating value-added uses, building new markets and funding agronomic research.  

“We really need the stability that those tax incentives provide,” Lutz said. “That’s a program that can be put in right now, and we also want to make sure that pro-checkoff language makes its way into the Farm Bill.”  

The team also had a unique chance to visit USDA’s headquarters, where they met with the global commodities leaders to learn more about the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) for U.S. soy and oilseeds. Another meeting was held with Lance Honig, who oversees USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).  

“They went over their data collection process and degree of security they use,” Johnson said. “It was a good lesson in the importance of the data USDA collects and the importance of those procedures.” 

Joining the WSA team in D.C. was ASA Young Leader Danny Brisky, who participated in his first visit to Capitol Hill and federal buildings. Brisky earned a spot to participate in the Young Leader’s third phase and said the camaraderie with his fellow farmers made for a fruitful visit to the nation’s capital. 

“It was truly an amazing experience,” said Brisky, who hopes to remain an WSA director after his at-large position expires next year. “We’re lucky to have an organization like WSA representing us in Madison and D.C., and I was glad to play a role in telling our story.” 

Although Congress wasn’t in session, WSA was successful in sharing its message to policymakers.  

“Being here really does matter,” Rehberg said. “You have to be able to tell your story, and that’s what we did.”  

Farm fair face-to-face  

Washington, D.C. wasn’t the only place where WSA made an impact the week of July 15. Back home in Wisconsin, WSA Directors Steve Trzebiatowski and Katie Kaczor participated in the Great American Farm Fair in Waterford as part of the Republican National Convention in nearby Milwaukee.  

During the fair, WSA visited with commodity groups, Rep. Van Orden and heard from House Ag Committee Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson. Trzebiatowski, a past WSA president, spoke for 10 minutes with Rep. Van Orden about policies and an Aug. 16 demonstration at Chippewa Valley Technical College promoting the benefits of SoyFoam, a soy-based, PFAS-free firefighting foam.  

“That was huge. The congressman was all about the firefighter foam,” Trzebiatowski said. “We look forward to staying in touch with him and hope he can attend, because he’s a big advocate for farming and firefighters.”