WEST BEND, Wis. — A Washington County farmer is sharing his thoughts about how recent tariff developments might affect his farm's bottom line and America's agricultural trade partnerships.
Bob Roden, who operates a farm in West Bend, has been monitoring the Supreme Court's ruling on President Trump's tariff powers and its potential impact on his livelihood selling milk, wheat, and soybeans.
WATCH: West Ben farmer predicts tariff changes could impact agricultural trade relationships
Roden believes too many people without agricultural experience are making decisions that affect farmers.
"There are too many people influencing too much in agriculture that don't understand it," Roden said. "Right now, I think a lot of these businesses are using the tariffs as an excuse to raise prices."
The farmer said he's seeing costs for materials like steel continue to rise while his income from agricultural products remains stagnant.
He questions whether current price increases are solely due to tariff policies.
"Today, the prices have not changed and have even gone up," he said. "I don't know if that's only because of tariffs."
Roden's primary concern centers on how tariff changes might affect international trade relationships for American agricultural products.
"How soon are they going to come back to the United States?" he said. "Because they have other places to go throughout the world."
The farmer emphasized that tariffs are just one piece of a larger economic puzzle affecting agriculture.
"What's affecting me as a farmer today in 2026 isn't only the tariffs," he said. "It's part of the whole picture, but it's not only the tariffs."
Roden described maintaining stable prices as an ongoing challenge for farmers.
"It's very difficult to maintain," he said. "They fluctuate so dramatically."
Overall, he said inflation and the cost of farm maintenance continue to be his family's biggest challenges.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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