One of Wisconsin's most sought-after niche exports — believed in Asia to be an energy booster, stress reducer, even sexual aid — is becoming a casualty of frayed U.S. relationships abroad.

Ginseng companies in the state, primarily in Marathon County, have already cut expenses and could go out of business if the U.S. trade war with China continues much longer, local farmers said.

"The trade dispute goes beyond trade itself," said Ming Jiang, owner of Marathon Ginseng Gardens in Weston.

Jiang said the company had to cut its staff in April by one full-time job, hoping it would help stem financial losses. It hasn't helped much, though. The company's retail sales have been down 30 percent since the tariffs began a year ago, he said.

The ginseng industry adds $31 million in revenue annually to the Wisconsin economy, according to the Ginseng Board of Wisconsin. About 170 producers operate in the state, and although exact employment figures were unavailable, it takes 15 to 20 workers to pick one acre of ginseng in one day, using no technology.

Growers are now worried about how much ginseng they will plant this fall, when they need to plan their crop for the next three to five years because ginseng isn't harvested annually.

"Whether we have 5 acres or 10 acres, we'll see what happens," Jiang said.

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In March 2018, the Trump Administration announced plans to impose a tariff on steel and aluminum affecting multiple countries. In April 2018, China retaliated by imposing tariffs on American ginseng in China. Then in July 2018, the administration imposed tariffs on goods specifically from China.

President Donald Trump first began ramping up tariffs because he said China and other trading partners took advantage of the U.S. He hoped tariffs would lessen the trade deficit and bring lost American manufacturing jobs back into the country.

Jiang called the pain from the continued tariff an urgent issue and said he wants to see an immediate resolution from the upcoming G20 summit in Japan, which begins on Friday. Trump and President Xi Jinping of China are expected to resume trade talks at the summit.

"If they don’t solve it by this fall season, ginseng farmers are in for a really, really hard time," Jiang said.

He personally feels pessimistic about a resolution, as he knows ginseng farmers don't have the political clout to influence decision-makers in Washington to stop the tariffs. The crop is a niche product more familiar to people in central Wisconsin, where a unique soil composition supports its growth, than to most other Americans.

Wisconsin growers produce as much as 95% of all ginseng in the United States, and Marathon County produces almost all of the crop in the state.

More than 85 percent of the state's ginseng is exported to China or taken into China as gifts, Sen. Tammy Baldwin wrote to a U.S. trade representative in April, arguing for the trade dispute to be resolved. That makes China the single most important trade market for the ginseng industry in the U.S. and Wisconsin.

It's not just farmers and the agricultural businesses affected by the trade tensions with China, said Bradley Pfaff, secretary-designee at the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. Those tensions can cause harm at a local level too.

Farmers often buy their fertilizer, seed and other equipment locally, Pfaff said, feeding into the local economy and employing local labor.

"People in Wausau might not consume ginseng, but they're impacted positively by it being grown here," Pfaff said.

He didn't anticipate the trade war would go on this long when it started last year, he said. Meanwhile, farmers are paying the economic price for a dispute that otherwise doesn't involve them, stemming from issues such as the alleged theft of intellectual property by China.

Ginseng is a root plant popular in China and other Asian countries for its supposed health benefits including a boost to the immune system, improved concentration and reduced fatigue. However, the medical community has said more research is needed to prove those benefits.

Will Hsu, president of Hsu's Ginseng Enterprises Inc. in Wausau, said during a panel discussion on the impact of the trade war that drinking a mug of ginseng tea in China is as popular as enjoying a morning cup of coffee in the U.S.

In an interview, Hsu said he understands why the trade war has been going on, but it means growers have no control over most of the variables affecting their income.

"You’re asking farmers to plant a crop that they don’t know what they’re gonna get paid for in four or five years," he said.

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Got a question or tip? Contact reporter Megan Stringer at (715) 207-1571 or mstringer@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @megstringers.