American farmers reeling from record-high diesel costs are getting $8 billion in reduction from the Trump administration.
President Trump announced the transfer as both harvest season and the midterm elections close to.
“Tonight I’m also pleased to announce that the Department of Agriculture will be launching a new Harvest Fuel Relief program, providing our farmers with $8 billion in support to offset diesel costs during this harvest season,” he said at a Monday night time rally in Kansas, where he was stumping for GOP Sen. Roger Marshall.
Alan Montag plants soybeans on farmland he leases close to West Bend, Iowa in May 2026. Getty Images
“And when the Republicans win, we will pass even more funding for our farmers. We love our farmers,” he added.
Diesel costs are up a painful 75% over the previous 12 months, hitting a latest peak of $6.53 a gallon on Sept. 22. Since then, the price has eased a bit, to $6.32 as of Tuesday, according to AAA.
The new “Harvest Fuel Relief” program will present “simple, proportional support to producers using a uniform formula to cover a portion of modeled losses during the 2026 crop year,” according to the Department of Agriculture.
Specific payouts will be based mostly on Farm Service Agency information, the division added.
Back in December, the feds supplied a comparable program, paying out $12 billion to more than 560,000 farmers harm during the US’ commerce wars as they dampened worldwide demand for their items.
President Donald Trump greets supporters during a marketing campaign rally at Heartland Credit Union Arena on October 19, 2026 in Park City, Kansas. Getty Images
This time, the cost program is aimed at addressing high prices during the battle on Iran. Oil provides were badly disrupted by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and ongoing Houthi attacks on Saudi oil services threaten to keep costs unstable.
Along with diesel fuel, nitrogen fertilizer is up.
It’s been a tough 12 months for farmers. Monthly Chapter 12 bankruptcies, which restructure debt, reached a six-year high in April, according to Law360.
The American Farm Bureau Federation applauded Trump’s new coverage.
A farmer inspects corn seedlings at a farm in Atlantic, Iowa, on May 11. Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images
“Farmers and ranchers welcome the administration’s announcement of $8 billion in relief through the Harvest Fuel Relief program to help farmers struggling with high diesel prices,” the lobbying group said in a assertion.
“We look forward to working with the president and USDA to ensure specialty crop growers, livestock producers, fishermen and others get the support they need so they can continue growing the food America’s families rely on,” it added.
Still, the farm reduction plan drew some criticism.
“It’s like an arsonist putting out a fire that he caused,” Gary Wertish, the president of the Minnesota Farmers Union, informed The Post.
A farmer harvests soybeans on his land in Pine Island, Minnesota on Oct. 3. UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
“It’s not going to have much of an impact,” he said of the funds. “Whenever prices go up, we never see them come down.”
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins hailed Trump as “the most pro-farmer president of my lifetime.”
“More targeted relief is coming to our farmers,” she said in a assertion. “This $8 billion dollar investment will help bring certainty to our farmers during this harvest so they can continue to feed our nation.”
