The American Soybean Association (ASA), representing more than 500,000 U.S. soybean farmers, said Tuesday that U.S. soybean farmers are “standing at a trade and financial precipice” and urged the Trump administration to strike a trade deal with China as soon as possible. “U.S. soybean farmers cannot survive a prolonged trade dispute with our largest customer,” said Caleb Ragland, president of ASA, in a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump. China imported an average of 61 percent of the world’s available soybean supplies over the last five years, and China has been the top buyer of U.S. soybeans for years, according to the association. However, China has not purchased any U.S. soybeans for the upcoming months as the harvest season approaches quickly, said Ragland. “The further into the autumn we get without reaching an agreement with China on soybeans, the worse the impacts will be on U.S. soybean farmers,” Ragland said. “Soybean farmers are under extreme financial stress,” he ...