Trade War May Be More Than “a Short-Term Hiccup” for Agriculture

“China has the world’s biggest appetite for pork. It’s such a beloved staple that the written Chinese character for ‘home’ depicts a pig inside a house. U.S. producers banked on that business being around for years. “That’s changed. As a result of the Trump administration’s clash with Beijing over trade, China’s tariffs on U.S. pork have climbed as high as70%, making U.S. imports more expensive. At the same time, an outbreak of African swine fever in China has increased demand for imported pork. To fill the void, Chinese customers are increasingly looking to companies in Europe and South America to fill their orders—and those companies aim to turn that opportunity into long-term business. The shift raises the prospect of not just a short-term hiccup for American hog farmers, but a fundamental realignment in the global supply chain in one of the world’s hungriest markets.The Journal writers pointed out that, “A boom in China’s domestic hog production, fueled by government efforts to consolidate smaller, family-owned farms into giant commercial operations, helped push pork prices to a four-year low in May. Outbreaks of African swine fever have since driven domestic pork prices in September near their highest level in a year.”“China’s efforts to buy low-cost pork from other countries suggest that the U.S. may have to cut prices to keep its sales there,