Three things showed up in my inbox today that reminded me that what’s below the surface can impact us. Whether it’s in the soil – the roots, microbes, and everything else we can’t see underground, or the negotiations and deal-making behind the scenes of a trade war, or the spin that a Public Affairs person puts out, not knowing the “back story” means we might not make the best decisions we could.
So today, I’m sharing a few below-the-surface back stories with you.
Drought and Grazing – What Should You do?
We’ll start with what happens underground in response to drought and grazing. It’s a great article from the Beef Cattle Research Council. Even if this article isn’t for you, I highly recommend getting on their email list. They always have lots of helpful information to share.
In April 1912, the RMS Titanic sank off the coast of Newfoundland after an iceberg tore a hole in her hull 25 feet below the waterline. Only a tenth of an iceberg is visible above the water; most of it lurks beneath the surface. Forage plants are similar: how things look on the soil surface may not reflect what’s happening further down.
With drought a recurring reality in many regions, you might wonder what affects pastures more – the drought or overgrazing during drought? Dr. James Cahill and co-workers at the University of Alberta studied how grazing season and intensity affected forage yield and root mass under drought conditions (Differential sensitivity of above- and belowground plant biomass to drought and defoliation in temperate grasslands.).
Read on to find out what the research discovered and what it means for your grazing management. It’s particularly timely as spring grazing can have a huge impact on how much forage you grow through the entire grazing season.
Behind the Scenes of Tariffs and Trade Wars
While tariffs have been front and center for this administration’s trade policy, the deals behind the scenes are very important. This April 22 Politico* article gives you a good idea of what is going on in the trade war heating up between the U.S. and China and how it might affect producers. It also provides some information about U.S. trade policy that shows the U.S. has used similar tactics.
Here’s an excerpt:
Beijing is showing the Trump administration that tariffs aren’t the only weapon in a trade war.
Long before President Donald Trump fired the opening shots of a new U.S.-China trade war from the White House Rose Garden last week, Beijing had been working to perfect its stealth campaign blocking key U.S. agriculture and energy exports. The Chinese government over the past four months has halted or significantly curtailed direct imports of major U.S. commodities including beef, poultry and liquefied natural gas through an array of bureaucratic blocks and tricky third-party sales deals.
The Chinese government knows where it can pinch U.S. exporters hardest. It has already declined to renew export licenses for hundreds of meatpacking plants, alleged that some U.S. chicken products contain unwanted drugs and stopped importing U.S. natural gas. Those industry targets also happen to be some of the president’s most ardent political supporters.
Such tactics underscore the dexterity of Beijing’s response to rising U.S.-China trade tensions — and its years of preparation for a new trade war.
You can read the full article here.
Also below the tariff surface are China’s latest efforts to manage its beef supply. According to this Reuters* April 22 article, U.S. beef is being replaced by Australian beef. At risk is $125 million a month in U.S. beef exports. As the article notes, China is intentionally hitting the U.S. farming sector, a move that is common in trade wars.
What’s Really Behind USDA’s $340M Disaster Relief Announcement?
Finally, let’s talk about spin. Here’s Wikipedia’s definition:
In public relations and politics, spin is a form of propaganda, achieved through knowingly providing a biased interpretation of an event. While traditional public relations and advertising may manage their presentation of facts, “spin” often implies the use of disingenuous, deceptive, and manipulative tactics.
I was a public affairs person, I know a lot about spin, and today’s announcement by USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins is a master class in it.
At an appearance in Fargo, North Dakota, Rollins announced $340.6 million in disaster relief for farmers and rural communities, including $25 million for North Carolina and Tennessee. It sounded like a fresh initiative. But here’s the full story:
Much of that money was already approved months ago, under the bipartisan American Relief Act of 2025, signed by President Biden in December. The Act was intended to ensure uninterrupted support during the transition to the Trump administration, including more than $110 billion in disaster relief and $10 billion in agriculture assistance. (See the AP article here.)
However, once the new administration took office in January, many of those funds were delayed or frozen, particularly those tied to conservation, rural infrastructure, and disaster recovery. Farmers in North Carolina and elsewhere were left waiting for relief that had already been allocated (Here’s an example of reporting on the delays: Border Belt Independent).
What changed? Not the funding — just the branding.
The Trump administration’s recent announcement appears to repackage these delayed funds under new names like the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program (ECAP).
Why It Matters
This isn’t just bureaucratic maneuvering. Farmers were counting on those funds months ago, and communities hit by hurricanes and droughts were left waiting. Announcements made now may play well politically, but the aid was already authorized and then delayed during a crucial time.
