On his third "Back to Our Roots” RV tour, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue made his way through west central Ohio. Perdue was joined by Small Business Administrator Linda McMahon on Wednesday. While in Lima, the two cabinet members participated in a town hall discussion with the Lima Chamber of Commerce. The two announced a memorandum that their two departments will be working together. McMahon said after meeting Perdue she realized some farmers are small business owners and the two departments can help each other. She mentioned workforce development as a top issue.
"We have to make sure that our vocational programs are in place," McMahon said. "Just as you heard from one of the members of the audience today, a young person starting in the farming industry. Ok, how are we going to do that? It really is a cross-collateralization among all of our agencies to help each other to help small businesses grow across the country."
During a 40 minute Q & A session, Perdue was asked about the possible tariffs farmers could face from China. The Asian nation announced it plans to impose 25 percent duties on agriculture products including soybeans and corn. The announcement comes after President Trump said he’d impose tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods.
"There's a legitimate anxiety out here over the soybean tariffs today, but these are announcements," Perdue said. "They’re not going to take effect. We want to see what the market impact is. Our goal, frankly, is to get China to the table to discuss some of the unfair trading practices. On the phone with the president last night, he wanted me to assure the farmers and producers of America that they will not be allowed to be the casualty in these trade disputes. He will support them every step of the way."
McMahon’s visit will end in Celina on Wednesday. As for Perdue, he’ll continue on to Kentucky, through Friday.
