The US and China agree a $30 billion tariff cut. US farmers wait to hear if China's 10% tax on their crops is in it

The stories

10 on this beat today.

Every story told the same way: what happened, who is involved, why it matters, how it works, the truth and the good news.

1. 01

   The US and China agree a $30 billion tariff cut. US farmers wait to hear if China's 10% tax on their crops is in it

   $30bn

   of goods in the tariff cut the US and China agreed at their summit

   Xinhua reported it on Saturday, and Greer said the US would publish details on Monday [3][4]

   10%

   China's tax on US soybeans and other farm goods, which Brazil's soybeans do not pay

   a US exporter says removing it would make US beans as cheap as Brazil's at US ports on the Pacific [1]

   $3.9bn

   of US farm goods other than soybeans bought by China from January to July

   it promised at least $17 billion a year, with a smaller target for 2026 [2]

   nearly 10m tonnes

   of US soybeans China had bought from this year's crop by 10 September

   traders say it is on pace for the 25 million tonnes a year it promised [1]

   What happened

   • The US and China agreed a $30 billion arrangement to cut tariffs, the taxes each charges on goods from the other, China's state news agency Xinhua reported on Saturday. [3]
   • Jamieson Greer, the US official who negotiates trade deals, said the US would publish the details on Monday. [4]
   • Before the summit, Greer named US farm goods, energy and medical devices as goods whose tariffs could be cut. [8]
   • Reuters reported that cutting its taxes on US farm goods was China's easiest way to do its part. [5]
   • China still charges a 10% tax on US soybeans and other farm goods, and soybeans from Brazil do not pay it. [1]
   • So China's state-owned grain buyers, COFCO and Sinograin, bought US soybeans this summer, while private Chinese companies that crush soybeans stayed away. [1]
   • By 10 September, China had bought nearly 10 million tonnes of US soybeans from this year's crop. [1]
   • Traders say it is on pace for the 25 million tonnes a year it promised. [1]
   • China also promised to buy at least $17 billion a year of other US farm goods, such as grain and meat. [1][2]
   • It bought $3.9 billion of them in the first seven months of 2026. [2]
   • That was only slightly more than in the same months of 2025, when these sales were at a six-year low. [2]
   • Greer said the two sides agreed to leave some goods, including US farm goods, out of any future fight over tariffs. [4]
   • The truce that paused their trade war was due to end on 10 November, and now runs to 10 January. [5]
   • In South Dakota, about 30% of the soybeans grown were sold to China, until China stopped buying them last year. [6]

   $17bn or morePromised each year

   vsvs

   $3.9bnBought, Jan to Jul 2026

   Who is involved

   • Jamieson Greer the US trade representative, who negotiates trade deals for the US government; he says farm goods will be kept out of future tariff fights
   • COFCO and Sinograin grain-buying companies owned by China's government; they bought US soybeans this summer although Brazil's were cheaper
   • American Soybean Association and National Sorghum Producers groups of US farmers; they wrote to Trump asking him to get China to drop its 10% tax
   • Kevin Scott a farmer who runs South Dakota's soybean association; he says half of their income comes from selling abroad

   How it unfolded

   1. Mar 2025 China puts taxes of 10% to 15% on US farm goods, hitting $21 billion of sales [7]
   2. Oct 2025 a truce is agreed in South Korea, and China agrees to buy US soybeans again [7]
   3. May 2026 after a summit in Beijing, China commits to at least $17 billion a year of US farm goods [5][7]
   4. Thu 24 Sep Trump and China's leader, Xi Jinping, hold their summit in the US capital [5]
   5. Sat 26 Sep Xinhua reports the $30 billion tariff-cut deal [3]
   6. Mon 28 Sep the US is due to publish the details [4]

   Why it matters

   Watch the US list of goods due on Monday: if China's 10% tax on soybeans goes, a US exporter says US beans would cost the same as Brazil's at US ports on the Pacific. [1][4]

   The truth

   • What is really going on US officials say the summit kept US farm goods out of any future trade fight, and it produced a $30 billion tariff cut whose list of goods is not out yet. [3][4]As long as China's 10% tax stays, its private buyers keep choosing Brazil's cheaper soybeans, and China's promise is kept mostly by its state-owned buyers. [1]
   • Why it works on people A round number like $30 billion sounds like a win for farmers before anyone has seen which goods it covers. [3]
   • Who gains Brazil's soybean sellers — China's 10% tax falls on US soybeans and not on Brazil's, so private Chinese buyers keep buying Brazilian beans. [1]
   • Who gains China's government — Its state-owned buyers can switch US purchases on and off, so it can keep using soybeans as a bargaining chip, as it often has. [1]
   • Who pays US soybean farmers, as in South Dakota — About 30% of South Dakota's soybeans went to China before it stopped buying last year. [6] China's 10% tax still makes US beans dearer than Brazil's for Chinese buyers. [1]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether China's 10% tax on US soybeans is part of the $30 billion cut.

     Xinhua gave the total, and Greer said the US would publish the details on Monday. [3][4] Before the summit, Reuters reported that cutting farm taxes was China's easiest way to do its part. [5]

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether China will buy the $17 billion a year of other US farm goods it promised.

     It bought $3.9 billion in the first seven months of 2026. [2] US officials say its farm purchases lag behind what it promised. [10]

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether China links its farm purchases to Taiwan.

     Wu Xinbo, a Shanghai professor who advises China's foreign ministry, said China would meet US wishes on farm purchases if the US met China's wishes on Taiwan. [9]

1. 02

   Somalia warns of famine as floods near

   What happened

   • Somalia's government and the UN said on 23 September that 5.4 million people face crisis-level hunger or worse from October to December. [11][12]
   • The count comes from the IPC, the scale aid agencies use to rank how bad hunger is. [11]
   • It finds a risk of famine among people forced from their homes in Baidoa, in Bay region. [11]
   • El Nino, a warm spell in the Pacific, is expected to bring floods from October. [11]
   • Somalia's disaster agency says 2.5 to 3.5 million people could be hit, and about 1 million forced off land they farm and graze. [11]

   2.5m to 3.5mPeople in flood areas

   ↓→

   About 1mLikely forced from land

   Why it matters

   The UN and Somalia's government want food and medicine moved into flood areas before the roads are cut in October. [11]

   FAO, the UN's food agency, says funding cuts are holding back the flood work its warnings called for. [12]

   How it works

   Food has to be moved in before a place is cut off

   A flood, a siege or a trade fight can shut the way food travels, and after that no money brings it through.

   The twist

   A place that may be cut off needs its food inside before the way in shuts. After that, no amount of money can bring food in from outside.

   The picture

   Before OctoberRoads open

   ↓→

   October to DecemberFloods expected

   Step by step

   1. 1 A flood, a war or a trade fight can shut a road, a port or a market
   2. 2 Once it is shut, food cannot get in or out, whatever anyone pays
   3. 3 So families stock up, aid agencies send food ahead, and farm groups ask for their goods to be kept out of future fights
   4. 4 Moving early costs money now, for a closing that may never come
   5. 5 Whoever cannot pay early is left with what is already inside

   The same force, elsewhere today

   Where this chain is also running, in today's other stories.

   • Somalia warns of famine as floods near

     The UN and Somalia's government want food and medicine moved into flood areas now, because floods are expected to cut the roads from October.

   • Tigray's families stock up as war returns

     People in Mekelle are buying food and taking out cash now, because in the last war Tigray was cut off and hundreds of thousands faced famine-like conditions.

   • Yemen's feeding centres fill again

     Here the closing has already happened: the Houthis took the Red Sea ports that aid came through, and a feeding centre in Aden cannot keep up.

   Where you've seen this

   Towns on winter ice roads

   remote towns in northern Canada bring in a year's fuel and supplies in the few weeks a frozen road can carry lorries

   A snowstorm forecast

   bread and milk sell out the day before the storm, not the day after

   Research bases in Antarctica

   the year's food arrives on the summer ship, before sea ice closes the way in

   The catch

   Stocking up early only works for people with money and space to store food. In Tigray, panic-buying emptied shelves in Adigrat, and basic goods got harder to find and to afford.

   And the whole of it

   A soybean farmer in South Dakota, a family in Mekelle and an aid worker in Baidoa each depend on a way in or out that someone else can shut. Most food on any table has crossed several of them, and whoever eats it cannot see which ones stayed open.

   The truth

   • Who pays Displaced families in Baidoa, Somalia — They face a risk of famine, and floods from October may cut the roads that aid uses. [11]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How many people in Baidoa, Somalia, are already in famine.

     The famine-risk finding uses data collected in April, and a new check is planned for October. [11]

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether food and medicine reach Somalia's flood areas before October.

     The UN says funding decisions in the coming weeks will decide it. [11] FAO says funding cuts are already holding back its flood work. [12]

   Good news

   • In Burhakaba district, in Somalia's Bay region, people were at risk of famine in April. Child malnutrition there has improved since, after the spring rains and more aid.
   • Between 2021 and 2025, children in Somalia were admitted for treatment of severe malnutrition more than 2.25 million times, with support from UNICEF and Somalia's government.

1. 03

   Tigray's families stock up as war returns

   What happened

   • People in Mekelle, the capital of Tigray in northern Ethiopia, are buying food and taking out cash, fearing a return to full war. [13]
   • In Adigrat, a town near Eritrea, a resident described panic-buying and empty shelves. [13]
   • Fighting broke out on Wednesday, and Ethiopian Airlines cancelled all flights after Tigrayan forces seized three airports. [15]
   • The state phone company's services were then cut, and many people pay with mobile money that needs those networks. [15]

   Why it matters

   In the 2020-22 war Tigray was cut off, and hundreds of thousands of people were pushed into famine-like conditions. [13][15]

   A businessman in Mekelle expects the cut transport links to push up the price of basic goods. [14]

   How it works

   People in Mekelle are buying food and taking out cash now, because in the last war Tigray was cut off and hundreds of thousands faced famine-like conditions.

   The idea, in story 02: Food has to be moved in before a place is cut off →

   The truth

   • Who gains Families in Mekelle with cash to spend — They can stock up on food now, before transport cuts push prices up further. [13][14]
   • Who pays Tigray families without cash — Cash has been scarce for months, and the mobile money many rely on needs phone networks that were cut. [15]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How much food is getting into Tigray.

     Residents say transport was suspended, and the state phone network was cut. [14][15] The AP could not check the closures itself, and the BBC cannot report from the region. [14][15]

2. 04

   Yemen's feeding centres fill again

   What happened

   • Yemen's civil war has returned, as Houthi rebels backed by Iran advance against the forces of Yemen's government, which Saudi Arabia backs. [16]
   • The Houthis have seized the Red Sea coast, including key ports for aid, and more than 130,000 people have fled their homes. [16]
   • In Aden, a city held by Yemen's government, a feeding centre for malnourished children is struggling with a rise in patients, its director, Dr Arwa Atef, said. [16]
   • One boy, aged 7, reached it in acute crisis after being carried from Mokha, a city 270km away. [16]

   Why it matters

   Many Yemenis were already hungry before this fighting, in the Arab world's poorest country. [16]

   Some health centres now turn away pregnant women and other patients to treat the wounded. [16]

   How it works

   Here the closing has already happened: the Houthis took the Red Sea ports that aid came through, and a feeding centre in Aden cannot keep up.

   The idea, in story 02: Food has to be moved in before a place is cut off →

   The truth

   • Who pays Malnourished children in Yemen — Hospitals are treating the wounded first, and a feeding centre in Aden cannot keep up. [16]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How many of Yemen's aid ports still work.

     The AP reports that the Houthis seized the Red Sea coast, including key ports for aid, but gives no count of ships still arriving. [16]

3. 05

   Korean chicken stew recalled in the US

   What happened

   • Sempio Food Services, of Cerritos, California, recalled about 4,596 pounds of ready-to-eat Korean chicken stew on 25 September. [17]
   • The stew was made in South Korea and entered the US without being inspected again on import, said the US Food Safety and Inspection Service, which checks meat. [17]
   • It went to shops and distributors in eight states, including Florida, New York and Virginia. [17]
   • The same day, Fontanini Foods of McCook, Illinois, recalled about 2,320 pounds of pork sausage links that may contain hard plastic. [18]

   Why it matters

   No one has reported falling ill from the stew. [17]

   The two recalls followed a far bigger one earlier that week, of more than 167,000 pounds of meat sold with a false inspection mark. [19]

   The truth

   • Who pays Shoppers in eight US states who bought Sempio's stew — They are told to throw it away or take it back. [17]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Which shops sold Sempio's recalled chicken stew.

     The US meat-safety service says it will post the list of shops when it has one. [17]

4. 06

   Colombia tags cattle; Brazil's Para waits

   What happened

   • Colombia's law of June 2026 makes ranchers fit cattle with ear tags or GPS chips, so beef can be traced to farms that did not clear forest, Reuters reported on 23 September. [20]
   • Cattle ranching causes an estimated 80% of the Amazon's lost rainforest. [20]
   • Colombia's slaughterhouses, cattle auctions and traders have two years to start checking. [20]
   • In Brazil, home to 88% of the Amazon's cattle, the state of Para has put off its own tagging plan to the end of 2030, after ranchers complained. [20]

   June 2028Colombia's checks

   vsvs

   End of 2030Para's cattle tags

   Why it matters

   Marfrig, a Brazilian meat company, says it has blocked 15% to 20% of its suppliers for breaking its rules. [20]

   A plan for Brazil's banks to check where meat companies buy cattle has slipped to 2027. [20]

   The truth

   • Who gains Ranchers in Para, Brazil — The state put off compulsory cattle tagging to the end of 2030 after they complained. [20]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether Colombia's new government enforces its cattle law.

     Colombia's new president, Abelardo de la Espriella, has an environment plan that does not mention tracing cattle and talks of cutting rules, an expert told Reuters. [20]

   Good news

   • Marfrig, a Brazilian meat company, says nearly 4,500 farms it had blocked for breaking its rules have been let back in after putting things right.
5. 07

   Few food firms plan for climate damage

   What happened

   • A report from Lumina Intelligence, a market research firm, finds that 54% of food and drink business leaders call being ready for climate damage important or very important. [21]
   • Only 6% have fully built it into their company's plans, FoodNavigator, a food-industry news site, reported. [21]
   • FoodNavigator points to crops destroyed by natural disasters, supply chains broken and sudden jumps in the price of ingredients. [21]

   54%Say it matters

   vsvs

   6%Have it in their plans

   Why it matters

   So most of these companies have no full plan for a flood or a drought, like the floods expected in Somalia and the drought in England. [11][21][24]

6. 08

   Lab-made breast-milk protein nears launch

   What happened

   • Eclipse Ingredients, an Australian start-up, plans to start selling human lactoferrin next year, its chief executive, Siobhan Coster, told AgFunderNews, a news site on farm and food technology. [22]
   • Lactoferrin is a protein found in breast milk; the cow form is already sold, and the human form is not yet on the market. [22]
   • Eclipse will sell first to cosmetics makers, then for adult nutrition, and later for baby formula, which takes longer to approve. [22]
   • It has signed early agreements with five distributors. [22]

   Why it matters

   Coster says the company's own tests show the human form works better on human cells than the cow form; that is Eclipse's claim, not an outside test. [22]

   AgFunder, which owns AgFunderNews, has invested in Eclipse. [22]

   The truth

   • Who gains AgFunder, an investor in Eclipse Ingredients — Its own news site, AgFunderNews, published the start-up's launch plans, with the investment disclosed. [22]
7. 09

   Every German field mapped since 1990

   What happened

   • Scientists published maps of how every farm field in Germany was used each year from 1990 to 2023, in the journal Scientific Data on 26 September. [23]
   • They taught a computer program to read satellite pictures, using farmers' own records of what they grew. [23]
   • The maps sort land into 13 crops and grassland, and were right 85% to 93% of the time from 2010 to 2022. [23]
   • Big crops such as maize, rapeseed and sugar beet were picked out best, and fallow land was among the hardest. [23]

   Why it matters

   Germany's official farm counts have gaps in some years. [23]

   The authors say the maps can fill those gaps and break the counts down to smaller areas. [23]

8. 10

   England's drought may last into next year

   What happened

   • Parts of England could stay in drought until next year, the BBC's science correspondent wrote, even after wetter September days turned grass green again. [24]
   • The UK had five widespread heatwaves this summer, and some areas had no measurable rain for more than two months. [24]
   • Farmers told the BBC that a "brutal" few months had left them feeling the financial pressure. [24]
   • At the National Giant Vegetables Championship, growers had worked through hosepipe bans, and still set seven world records, pending checks. [24]

   Why it matters

   It lands on farmers already squeezed by the UK's hottest summer on record, and on growers facing hosepipe bans. [24]

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether England's drought ends this winter.

     The BBC says more rain is needed, and some parts may stay in drought until next year. [24]

   Good news

   • Growers at Britain's National Giant Vegetables Championship set seven world records, pending checks, including the heaviest beetroot, after a summer of heatwaves and hosepipe bans.