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Global Trade Needs Reset, U.S. Wheat Vice President Says by Matthew Weaver Capital Press, August 22, 2025

"Go to a farm meeting in America's heartland today
and you'll find fewer true free trade champions"

Trade negotiation results have been "largely positive" for wheat so far amid trade uncertainty, a  U.S. Wheat Associates leader says.

"I think it's really important that farmer-led organizations keep an open mind, both about current policies and future discussions," Dalton Henry, vice president of policy for U.S. Wheat, told Capital Press.

Some crops, particularly those dependent on China, are experiencing negative impacts, Henry said.

But for wheat, "Customers overseas know the U.S. is the world's most reliable supplier, and while the current U.S. trade policy may be adding some uncertainty to overall bilateral relationships, it really hasn't changed anything about the ability to access U.S. wheat supplies," Henry said.

Wheat industry leaders have pointed to "stubbornly low" prices, telling customers that wheat is "on sale", with no indication of upward price movement in the near future.

"I think the pricing environment we are in right now is only going to sharpen the focus on the need for a trade policy reset," Henry said. "In the U.S., new agreements are going to have to deliver meaningful market access -- either in the form of access to new markets or preferential access relative to our competitors."

At the World Trade Organization, any future agreement will have to actually manage and control bad actors, especially in the area of subsidies that tend to result in overproduction, Henry said.

'Strong enthusiasm' from farmers In a post on the U.S. Wheat website, Henry said that trade tensions, bilateral deal-making and pressure campaigns between governments are "hardly new" and "while turbulent at times, are more the norm" than broad free trade policies, which have only existed for about three decades.

Progress can be made in the trading environment, Henry said, although the answer is not absolute for every trade scenario.

The White House's "outwardly chaotic" negotiating strategy, repeated tariff cliffs and artificial deadlines have had negative impacts, Henry stated. Bulk wheat is purchased two to five months into the future and a potential higher-than-anticipated retaliatory tariff or "exorbitant" port fee "scares the bejeezus out of global wheat buyers."

"Go to a farm meeting in America's heartland today and you'll find fewer true free trade champions," Henry wrote. "Instead, there is strong enthusiasm for the negotiated purchase commitments and one-off trade deals that are the current focus of the Trump administration."

Read Henry's post here.

Global reset A reset on global trade is needed, Henry said in his post, calling it one of three reasons for U.S. wheat farmers to be optimistic.

The WTO did "incredibly important work for global ag trade and could do even more." But the current round of global trade negotiations began in 2001, without any "meaningful progress on a comprehensive outcome," Henry wrote.

"Many countries perceive that the potential gains from an agreement are outweighed by the benefits of the status quo where bad actors flaunt current rules," he wrote. "The United States has stepped back from a leadership position and took up one of an antagonist, which may be frustrating to many."

Purchase commitments Purchase commitments like those recently secured in Indonesia, Vietnam and Bangladesh open doors and build future opportunities, Henry wrote, citing market development work like U.S. Wheat's.

"For those benefits to accrue, these purchase commitments need to be seen as binding and be in place for multiple years," he wrote. "Then it's up to organizations like U.S. Wheat and USDA to prioritize work in those countries when planning for trade servicing, technical assistance and other market development and access activities." To date, many of the memorandums of understanding (MOUs) put in place or under consideration meet these criteria, Henry wrote.

'Messy process' Since the White House's April 2 reciprocal tariff announcement, "countries have been eager to find ways to purchase U.S. goods and to negotiate access, including specific volumes for key products," Henry wrote in the post. 

"Admittedly, this process is messy, but it is a way for countries, including the United States, to open their markets to some level of additional goods, while providing protection against a surge of imports that could threaten or upend key domestic industries," he wrote.

The coming years will likely continue to be "uncomfortable" for trade-dependent industries, but there can be light in the transition, Henry wrote. "We can bemoan the current U.S. trade policy for what it is -- uncertain," he wrote. "Or we can engage and be part of the effort to find opportunities -- both in the near-term and to prepare for the trade policy work of the future."

Related Pages:
'Lowest Prices We've Seen in Years,' WSU Small Grains Economist Says by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press, 8/12/25
As the Wheat Harvest Progresses, Prices are 'Stubbornly Low' by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press, 8/7/25
USDA: Larger Wheat Supplies, Fewer Exports, Lower Prices by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press, 3/12/25
Congress to Pay Farmers as Wheat and Barley Prices Tanked by Tom Peterson, Columbia Connection, 1/7/25
Abundant Wheat Supplies Depress World Prices, But Hope Emerges by Carol Ryan Dumas, Capital Press, 12/24/24
Northwest Wheat Leaders Connect with South American Buyers by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press, 11/11/24
NW Wheat Harvest: Yields and Exports Up, Prices Down by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press, 8/2/24
Global Wheat Stocks Tight, Prices Volatile in Year of War, Drought by Carol Ryan Dumas, Capital Press, 12/20/22
Wheat Prices Fall to Pre-War Levels by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press, 7/6/22