China's Snub of U.S. Soybeans Is a Crisis for American Farmers

23 pointsposted 5 months ago
by JumpCrisscross

10 Comments

lifis

5 months ago

I think those extra soybeans could be used to make rolled soy flakes. They are like oats, but contain a lot of protein and some fats, and can be combined with oats to form a complete meal (if a multivitamin and salt is also added).

It seems to me that soy flakes are currently very underrated and there's quite an opportunity to market them as a supplement to breakfast cereals, as an ingredient for protein-rich "muesli" and even as part of a non-ultra-processed full meal replacement.

lithos

5 months ago

This is why the American Food Pyramid is so messed up. Lobbyists bought it so their grain farmer clients wouldn't need to adapt to changing market conditions (end of WWII demand).

teslabox

5 months ago

Soy becomes edible when it's fermented into soysauce. Soybeans that aren't fermented are potent sources of phytoestrogens, which are plant chemicals that cause our tissues to swell sort of like estrogen.

Birds are better able to consume soy because they have faster metabolisms than humans. Pigs that are bred for food are able to consume soy because pig farmers don't care about the long-term health of their animals.

Most of the soybeans grown in the US are roundup-ready, so they're contaminated with glyphosate.

duxup

5 months ago

This has a knock on effect where US farmers are struggling, and that leads to US manufacturers of farming equipment struggling and so on. Willy-nilly tariff fights are not a wise decision as the second order effects can be surprising.

>White House officials have been considering rolling out federal aid to keep farmers afloat like they did during the 2019 trade war.

There was another NYT article that indicated farmers were not perpendicularly happy about this either as that aid tends to float farmers and keep prices low for the larger companies they sell the product. Farmers are aware that in a way they're just being used to support very large food companies who control the market.

JumpCrisscross

5 months ago

I live in Wyoming, near Idaho. One of my contenders for stupidest pocket of ‘24 voters is MAGA soybean farmers.

duxup

5 months ago

The NYT article I mentioned had farmers going to meet their local representative ... as if that rep isn't in the pockets of the companies they're complaining about.

JumpCrisscross

5 months ago

> as if that rep isn't in the pockets of the companies they're complaining about

Civic engagement is incredibly powerful in rural counties because a small group of farmers can single-handed cause a primary challenge. (They also tend not to kneecap themselves with this anticipatory nihilism.)

duxup

5 months ago

They even mention in the story how they go to these meetings and nothing happens, and there they are at another meeting with the guy they elected ... probably will again.

JumpCrisscross

5 months ago

> even mention in the story how they go to these meetings and nothing happens

Where do you think all the talk about a farm bailout is coming from?

foxyv

5 months ago

I imagine this will mean animal based agriculture in America should get much cheaper since Soybean meal is the lowest it has been in 10 years. Although that trend has been happening since it reached its highest highs in 2023.