Trade talks between China and the U.S. are set to resume in Washington on Thursday. 

Media reports suggested that China may increase purchases of U.S. agricultural products. If that were to happen, it could provide relief for U.S. farmers. 

The U.S. state of Illinois has been badly hit by the dispute, where more soybeans are produced there than in any other U.S. state. 

And as Illinois farmer Steve Fourez harvests this year's crop of soybeans and corn, he is deeply concerned about this. "It's one of those things that it has dragged on long enough. We need to get some kind of resolution, some kind of direction so we can plan (for the future)," he said.

The trade dispute between China and the U.S. has seen increasing tariffs imposed on billions of U.S. dollars of goods since early 2018.

As a result, exports of soybeans to China fell to 3.1 billion U.S. dollars last year, down from 12.2 billion U.S. dollars in 2017.

But there are signs of hope. China purchased around 600,000 tons of U.S. soybeans last month. 

Another Illinois farmer, Brandon Daugherty, is hopeful a deal can be made: "We've had decent markets until the last couple of years, ever since the trade tariffs have taken their toll. I would love to see those tariffs go by the wayside, China and U.S. get together, whatever it takes, get together."

For many farmers across the U.S., this growing season has presented a range of challenges, not least the unfavorable weather conditions across huge areas of the country, which means some fields are not yet ready to be harvested. Yield projections for both corn and soybeans are down from last year. 

Fourez says farmers could do with some good news. "It has been a high stress year. It is one thing to deal with Mother Nature and the hand she dealt us this year. But when you put depressed markets down on that, it gets hard people to see the light at the end of the tunnel," he said.  

Although it's a busy time for farmers, worry and anxiety still remain.