China imported no soybeans from the U.S. in September, the first time since November 2018 that shipments fell to zero, while South American shipments surged from a year earlier, as buyers shunned American cargoes during the ongoing trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies.
How long before US starts to import soybeans?
I doubt it. We plant soy beans as part of crop rotation, but don’t actually consume them. We sold them primarily to china to use as feed for animals since china primarily uses its soy beans to feed its population. Due to the trade war, china is purchasing soy from other countries. This means every other year, farmers will not have income unless either the US consumes a lot more soybeans or all the farmers agree to use a different crop rotation that has value. But soy beans are easy to plant, do a great job enriching soil, and can grow in most climates in the us.
I think that one of the major alternative crops is corn.
kagis
Looks like it. Same sort of counties:
Soy production:
https://www.nass.usda.gov/Charts_and_Maps/graphics/SB-PR-RGBChor.png
Corn production:
https://www.nass.usda.gov/Charts_and_Maps/graphics/CR-PR-RGBChor.png
So might mean more corn production over time.
You can’t do corn every year. Corn farmers need to rotate and the primary crop is soy since it replenishes the nutrients corn needs and it is easy and you can sell it (or could)
Growing more corn doesn’t seem to be possible without also growing more soy.