Tennessee Soybean Farmers Get Morale Boost From Better Prices, but Future Remains ‘Daunting’

By Cassandra Stephenson

China is once again purchasing U.S. soybeans under trade deal with Trump, but exports to the country still lag previous years

Crops are in the ground, the weather is cooperating, soybean prices are up slightly from 2025, and China — the biggest buyer of U.S. soybean exports — is once again placing orders after a trade agreement ended the country’s purchasing freeze last fall.

But while morale is higher among Tennessee soybean farmers as the 2026 growing season gets under way, the cost to plant crops remains high, and U.S. Department of Agriculture data shows there is still a long way to go before China’s purchases reach pre-trade war levels.

“There have been some positive movements in trade relations with China, specifically with soybeans, that have caused markets to improve over last year,” Tennessee Soybean Promotion Council Executive Director Stefan Maupin said Monday. “However, we are definitely not where we were in years past. For most farmers out there, the big question in front of them is, will it get back?”

Soybeans are Tennessee’s top crop, and a major agricultural product nationwide, covering about 10% of all U.S. farmland. More than 40% of U.S. soybeans are exported, and in recent years, roughly 60% of exported beans went to China.

China stopped purchasing U.S. soybeans in 2025 during tariff negotiations with the Trump administration, leaning instead on soybeans from South American trade partners.