Ask a Farmer: How Does Trade Affect Your Farm?

We asked Hoke County farmer Kelly Archambault how international trade affects her farm:

“We are row crop farmers in Hoke County, and we also manage two cotton gins. Our entire livelihood depends on trade, so the ability to sell our products internationally is critical. We’ve faced trade issues throughout the years and have had to reorganize and explore new avenues. For example, our cottonseed was once primarily sold to an oil mill but, without warning, the mill closed. We were in a bind. We began looking for a buyer for that seed immediately. But in the meantime, we decided to enclose an existing shelter, at an unexpected cost, to hold the seed while trying to find a new place to sell. We had to push more seed to dairy farmers for feed while the price of the seed was dropping steadily. Eventually, a market for the seed finally opened up in Korea. To this day, we continue to sell our seed to both Korea and the dairy industry.”