ICYMI: Trump Tariffs Hammering Montana Farmers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, January 30, 2026
CONTACT
press@montanademocrats.org
Helena, MT – Montana Public Radio is reporting this week how President Trump’s tariffs continue to wreak havoc on farmers and agricultural communities across Montana.
Ben Peterson, a farmer and board member of the Montana Farmers Union and Montana Democratic Party, spoke on a panel organized by Tariffs Cost Us, describing how Trump’s tariffs created market instability and turbulence, which hurt Montana farmers.
"Large corporations may be able to take advantage of this kind of volatility,” said Peterson. “Independent farms like mine cannot.”
Peterson told Montana Public Radio he’s definitely not making money on the ground, and possibly losing money.
“But I'm losing a whole lot less money than if I was planting wheat," added Peterson.
Despite the $12 billion aid package for farmers announced by the Trump Administration last month, industry leaders say many farmers, in particular grain farmers, will still go bust.
State legislator Senator Susan Webber, who is the plaintiff in a lawsuit filed by the Blackfeet Nation against the federal government, says they are still waiting for the Supreme Court’s ruling on Trump’s use of tariffs.
"Now we’re just at a stalemate," said Webber. "We're just not doing anything, we're static."
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