ANAHEIM — Brooke Rollins takes the stage to a roar from the Texans in the crowd and a hearty standing ovation.
The Texas native, now in her second year as ag secretary, gets right down to business at the 107th American Farm Bureau Convention, being held in Anaheim, California.
“Our farmers not only feed and fuel and clothe us, you all bear and sustain a set of values and principles that is essential to the continuation of our republic,” she told thousands of U.S. farmers.
“You are the bearers of a way of life, and custodians of the great American experiment.”
Addressing the ag trade deficit
Rollins addressed a long list of ag issues that she said arose during the Biden administration, citing a lack of new trade deals, and the fact that Biden was the only president since 1933 to not have a farm bill passed during his tenure.
She also addressed the massive ag trade deficit, which at one point last year was projected to hit nearly $50 billion.
“Thankfully, due to a lot of hustling around the world by the president and our team, that number is actually going to come in around $41 billion,” said Rollins, noting tree nut exports were up 11%, ethanol exports up 11%, dairy exports up 15% and corn exports were up 9% over 2024 levels.
“So, we were able to cut that deficit by $9 billion, but $41 billion is still a long way to go. We're also forecasting, though this year, another significant drop to about $37 billion for 2026. Again, making progress, but there’s much work left to do.”
Investing in rural America
Rollins went on to tout investments in rural America that came through the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act(OBBA) last year, calling it the “largest working and middle-class tax cut in history.”
As a result of OBBA tax reform measures, Rollins said real take home pay on average, will increase up to $10,000 for a family of four.
OBBA also increased reference prices for farm program commodities for the first time in over a decade, while also making improvements to crop insurance with enhanced coverage and lower premiums, saving producers an estimated $400 million a year.
“We made the death tax exemption permanent for almost 2 million family farms, and indexed it to inflation the question, we made permanent the 20% qualified bonus income deduction, full bonus depreciation,” Rollins added.
“It also included 100% immediate expensing, allowing farmers to deduct their capital-intensive business investments, and as well as extending the 45Z Biofuel Tax Credit through 2029.”
Rollins said the cost of inputs exploded since 2020, with fuel and oil costs increasing 32%, labor increasing 47%, and interest rates increasing 73%, while the cost of fertilizer, feed, and other inputs all went up exponentially.
“This is unsustainable,” said Rollins, noting the loss of over 140,000 family farms, according to USDA Ag Census data. “It is also incredible to think that while those cost of inputs were skyrocketing, not one new trade deal was struck in the years between 2020 and the end of 2024.”
Looking ahead, Rollins said dairy producers are now able to sign up for more affordable and robust coverage through the enhanced Dairy Margin Coverage program. USDA will also release farm program enrollment details that will allow producers to add up to 30 million new base acres to ARC and PLC programs for the first time since 2002.
While recent H-2A regulatory reforms to Adverse Effect Wage Rates calculations will save U.S. producers an estimated $2 billion in saving annually, Rollins said additional steps are in development with the Department of Labor and Homeland Security to streamline H-2A processing.
Investigations into anti-competitive behavior in the food supply sector, including meat processing, seed, fertilizer and equipment — which have similar vulnerabilities to price fixing and other anti-competitive practices, especially when carried out by foreign controlled corporations — will also continue, Rollins said.
“We will determine whether any anti-competitive behavior, especially by foreign controlled companies, increases the cost of living for Americans, increases your cost of doing business, and we will address those because they are a threat to our food supply and to our national security,” she added.
Expanding E15
Calling President Trump the most pro-biofuel president in history, Rollins said E15 has been priority since day-one, providing the Environmental Protection Agency tremendous flexibility in granting waivers allowing E15 sales.
“The Trump administration has gone as far as we can regulatorily to provide EPA E15 waivers,” Rollins said. “Congress must now do its job and pass nationwide year-round E15 legislation to continue to drive domestic crop demand providing a clear win-win for farmers and consumers.”
Government overreach
Rollins also took issue with California’s state-level policies that have an impact on farmers in other states, like the Proposition 12 pork law, which she said goes against federal jurisdiction and regulation over food production and safety.
According to Rollins, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state of California and elected officials seeking to reverse the Prop 12 restrictions.
“California has gone rogue and caused real pain to consumers and to our farmers under its pork confinement restrictions and cage free ag commitments. These oppressive actions cannot be allowed to continue,” she added.
“Freedom must win the day for the good of consumers and for the sake of our farm economy, which has an abundance of whole, wholesome, healthy food just waiting to reach the market and end up on dinner tables across the nation.”
To watch Rollins’ full comments, check out the video below.
