Food & Climate
It seems that with US President Donald Trump’s insistence on imposing tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, and doubling them on China, he did not realize that he was punishing the largest buyers of U.S. agricultural goods, which would negatively affect his citizens, whether consumers or farmers, so his country’s farmers did not believe him when he said that he loved them.
The Trump administration is implementing a 25% tariff on goods from Mexico and Canada, plus an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods.
The three countries together are the largest buyers of U.S. agricultural goods.
Together, the three countries are the largest buyers of U.S. agricultural goods. China, Mexico, and Canada were the top three foreign buyers of U.S. agricultural goods in 2023, with nearly $90 billion, distributed as follows: $33.7 billion, $28.2 billion, and $27.9 billion, respectively, according to a report seen by “Food & Climate” platform.
And food and related industries made up about 5.5% of the U.S. economy in 2023, contributing more than $1.5 trillion to GDP, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
But Trump’s newly appointed secretary of agriculture, Brooke Rollins said, according to a Reuters reporter, that the president’s message to farmers is “trust me”.
American farmers
American farmers are bracing for impact as President Trump’s trade war threatens foreign markets for U.S. agricultural goods.
“Farmers support the goals of ensuring security and fair trade with other nations, but additional tariffs, along with expected retaliatory tariffs, will take a toll on rural America,” American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall said.
The broad farm economy was already in a tough spot with low to negative margins, Collin Watters, director of exports and logistics at the Illinois Corn Growers Association, tells Axios. “Uncertainty around US tariffs and retaliation has had a negative impact on ag markets – pushing commodity prices lower,” he said.
Farmers fear that retaliatory tariffs “can result in restricted markets and lower prices for farmers,” Ohio Farm Bureau spokesperson tells Ty Higgins tells Axios.
Meanwhile, there are also concerns around rising prices for imported goods that farmers need to run their operations.
Case in point: About 85% of the U.S. ag sector’s supply of potash, a major ingredient in fertilizer, comes from Canada.
Tariffs of this magnitude would likely increase prices paid by U.S. shoppers since importers typically pass along a share of the cost of those higher taxes to consumers, experts said.
“The impacts could be quite immediate and quite profound,” Jonathan Doh, the Rammrath Chair in International Business at Villanova University.
Doh said that mostly everything we buy will likely be impacted by these higher tariffs.
“If you think about raspberries, or spinach, or basil, is actually coming from outside the country and grown hydroponically, so those will be hit,” he explained.
Roughly 90% of avocados eaten in the U.S. last year originated in Mexico, USDA data showed. Other products with a high concentration of Mexican imports include tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, jalapeños, limes and mangos.
Trump’s tariffs on largest buyers of U.S. agricultural goods results
Because of the Trump’s tariffs on largest buyers of U.S. agricultural goods, the prices will increase. Economists estimate the tariffs could lead to a rise in prices for a number of goods, indicating grocery bills could get even higher in the coming weeks, according to “Action News”.
During his speech to Congress on Tuesday, Trump told U.S. farmers that, despite some early bumps in the road, tariffs against Canada, Mexico and China would ultimately be in their best interest.
“Our new trade policy will also be great for the American farmer,” he said. “I love the farmer.”
But farmer Gary Wertish isn’t feeling the love from Donald Trump, despite what the U.S. president says.
Wertish, president of the Minnesota Farmers Union, disagrees. He was in Washington, D.C., for the speech, as a guest of Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
“It doesn’t feel like love,” Wertish told As It Happens host Nil Kӧksal. “It’s going to hurt farmers on both sides of the border.”
Farmers in the U.S. and Canada have pushed back against Trump’s 25% tariffs on Canadian products, as well as tariffs against Mexico and China, saying it will close off markets, hurt their bottom line, and potentially cost them billions in revenue.
Some American farmers, however, have taken the president at his word that, in the end, it will make the U.S. agricultural industry more competitive and self-sufficient, according to “CBC“.