The trade war with China is making life difficult for many farmers across Washington.
The state's 1,900 wheat growers, who export the vast majority of their crop, are particularly hurt. But so are cherry growers who just harvested their highly perishable crop.
Washington stands to lose USD 480 million in agricultural exports to China because of retaliatory tariffs, according to the state Department of Agriculture.
Mike Carstensen, a wheat grower whose farm is near Grand Coulee Dam, said that last year China was the No. 4 customer for his wheat.
"To date they have bought zero," Carstensen said of this year's crop.
Gary Bailey, a wheat farmer near the Washington-Idaho state border, said he hasn't sold any wheat to China since March.
"I hope it doesn't last too long," Bailey said of the trade war. "We've developed relationships with these countries and as we go along, they will be replacing our wheat with someone else's. We want to keep those relationships strong and healthy."
"The uncertainty of how long it takes to earn back market share concerns me the most."
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