(The Epoch Times)—President Donald Trump hosted a roundtable discussion on American agriculture in Chippewa County, Wisconsin, on June 5 celebrating policy achievements and strategies to strengthen farmers and ranchers.
“You all built this country, not the complainers, not the wise guys,” Trump said. “Today, we’re celebrating the historic strides for some of the most loyal, hardworking patriots anywhere in the nation, and they’re really called our American farmers.”
He noted challenges facing agriculture producers managing supply chain issues and said rising prices were “artificial,” caused by energy and fertilizer shortages.
“It’s going to come down to where it was, or lower. You’ll be very happy,” Trump said.
He told the crowd that within 90 days, they will be “better [off] than you were four months ago.”
Trump touted the newly released jobs report, which showed the economy grew by about 172,000 jobs.
The president spoke while seated at a table situated in front of green John Deere tractors and a large banner that read “Fighting for American Farmers.”
“We’re now making [America] greater than ever before,” Trump said.
Talks included achievements and efforts to expand exports to new markets, lower input costs, reduce regulations, and strengthen tax incentives. Other policy advancements for farmers mentioned include the doubling of estate tax exemptions, rescinding electric vehicle mandates, permitting equipment tax deductions in one year, developing rural opportunity zones, and eliminating some taxes on rural property loan interest, among others.
Wisconsin’s more than 5,000 dairy cow herds, which make up “America’s Dairyland,” increased exports by about $1.2 billion since Trump took office last year, according to the president.
The crowd erupted in applause when Olympic speed skater Jordan Stolz placed one of the gold medals he won earlier this year around Trump’s neck, and the president quickly quipped that he wasn’t “giving it back.”
His visit to Custer Farms near Chippewa Falls marked Trump’s first stop in the Badger State since he reclaimed the White House.
“We American farmers risk a lot and count on God’s blessing, and our forefathers in this country understood that—that’s what makes us great is God’s blessing,” the owner of the operation, Ken Custer, said during the event.
“We can compete with anybody in the world. We need fair trade.”
Roundtable attendees included Custer, Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), and Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), along with other local farmers and stakeholders.
Van Orden emphasized millions of dollars in federal investment in the state for healthcare and coal operations.
Rollins highlighted 19 new trade deals signed over the past year that will benefit the U.S. agriculture industry.
“We are going to break every record for dairy, for tree nuts, for corn, for ethanol, as we move the American farmers’ products, the best in the world, back out to the rest of the world,” she said.
Wisconsin native, beef producer and owner of Hall of Fame Farms, and pro football hall of famer Joe Thomas sat next to the president.
Thomas celebrated the administration’s small processors action plan, saying it will benefit “people like me that are trying to raise farm-to-table beef, Wagyu and Angus, and be able to feed our community.”
Gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany thanked Trump for allowing whole milk back in schools and for protecting farmland.
Supporters packed the farm, with hundreds of people arriving hours before the doors opened in hopes of attending the event.
Critics organized protests near the airport where Air Force One arrived and on the streets near the site where Trump spoke.
Known as a key battleground state, Wisconsin voters supported Trump in 2016 and 2024.
“We won in a landslide, and I just want to thank you for your support,” the president said.
