Within the next two weeks, President Trump has the opportunity to deliver another big win for Texas agriculture by negotiating a stronger, fairer trade agreement that protects American tomato growers from unfair foreign competition while preserving billions in revenue and thousands of jobs across Texas and the southwest.
With over 248,000 farms and ranches spanning more than 125 million acres, Texas leads the nation in total number of farms and ranks among the top states for agricultural exports. The industry contributes $25 billion annually and supports hundreds of thousands of jobs, from the Rio Grande Valley to the High Plains.
President Trump has never forgotten who feeds America. From his first term in office, he made protecting farmers a top priority — cutting red tape, taking on trade cheaters, and delivering direct support to U.S. producers hurt by global market shocks.
The impact to Texas cannot be overstated.
In 2019, President Trump suspended a tomato trade agreement with Mexico, known as the Tomato Suspension Agreement (TSA), and used that leverage to negotiate a tougher, more balanced deal. The result: a fairer playing field for U.S. growers, stronger anti-dumping enforcement, more certainty for Texas businesses, and a more stable and affordable tomato supply for consumers nationwide.
That agreement has proven to be a success.
A recent study by Texas A&M University found that it contributes over $8 billion annually to the economy. Right here in Texas, it generates an estimated $4.5 billion in economic activity and supporting over 32,000 jobs in Texas alone, with the Commerce Department not finding any known cases of Mexico violating the agreement to date. Because of the deal, American-grown tomatoes have benefited from higher prices as well.
But like any trade deal, there’s room for improvement. That’s why in April, President Trump announced a strategic suspension of the current TSA, effective July 14, creating a window to negotiate an even stronger deal that builds on his 2019 success.
It’s the same tough, targeted strategy that worked last time. It will work again this time too and Texas stands to benefit, which fellow Texan Brooke Rollins, who President Trump selected as Secretary of Agriculture, surely knows.
Texas lawmakers are rallying behind the effort. Congressman Tony Gonzales and several colleagues recently wrote to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urging action, stating: “This is an opportunity for President Trump to do what he does best: make a deal.” They warned that allowing the TSA to expire without a new framework could jeopardize more than 50,000 agriculture-related jobs in Texas and Arizona.
State officials agree. In late June, Governor Greg Abbott signed House Concurrent Resolution 108 recognizing the TSA’s importance to Texas and calling on the Trump administration to modernize the agreement, not scrap it. While a handful of out-of-state special interests are pushing for a permanent end to the TSA, Texas leaders have made their message clear: update the deal, don’t abandon it.
In 2019, President Trump stood up for Texas growers and got the job done. Now, with the July 14 deadline fast approaching, he’s ready to do it again, just as he always does at the buzzer of just about every trade deal negotiation he’s made to date.
Texas producers and the communities that depend on them know President Trump will deliver. With his leadership, a stronger, fairer agreement is within reach. He and his team just need to finish the deal and score another major victory for Texas agriculture.
The future of thousands of Texas jobs and billions in homegrown revenue hangs in the balance. But with President Trump back at the negotiating table, Texas farmers have every reason to feel confident.
Susan Combs served as Texas Agriculture Commissioner from 1999-2007.