China Looking Elsewhere for Sorghum

U.S. sorghum is in the crosshairs as China responds to tariff threats by the Trump administration. U.S. Grains Council (USGC) CEO Ryan LeGrand says Chinese buyers are looking elsewhere.

“China imported about 70 percent of the U.S. sorghum crop prior to the recent tensions between our two nations, and they’ve just stopped buying sorghum.”

LeGrand tells Brownfield USGC is exploring other opportunities. “We need to find a new market for sorghum. We’re looking hard in places like India and Vietnam. Going back to Mexico, which used to be our top customer for sorghum. So really turning over stones to find markets for our sorghum growers.”

The U.S. is the top exporter of sorghum in the world, topping 5 million tons in 2024.

EDITOR’S TAKE:

Anytime one customer is so dominant in the marketplace, it can be devastating if they look elsewhere. That is precisely what happened to sorghum producers. When the customer who purchases 70% of the crop stops buying, it is difficult to quickly replace that kind of a hit to the bottom line. No doubt, new markets will emerge, but it will likely take time. And, fingers crossed, China and the U.S. will kiss and make up, which will bring back some or all of the demand if that happens.

Don’t overlook one of your biggest customer opportunities – farmers/ranchers. As a reminder, they will purchase nearly one million pickup trucks this year. That number is likely to grow with the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill which contains language so they can write off capital expenditures in the year purchased. At any rate, be sure you let them know about the many special advantages you can offer as a CAD member – be it AgPack®, Ag Protect, CADFI, AgRally, AGwagon - and the list goes on!