Farmers, ranchers, producer and industry groups have publicly reacted to the U.S. government’s decision to impose a 25 per cent tariff on all goods from Canada and Mexico flowing into the U.S. We’ve compiled some of those statements, including the first from a U.S. producer group opposing the tariff, below. Each group is denoted in bold as a new statement begins:
Grain Growers of Canada (GGC) is sounding the alarm on the United States’ decision to impose 25% tariffs on Canadian grain and grain products, a move that threatens the viability of family-run grain farms and drives up food costs for American consumers.
“Tariffs of this magnitude will put family-run grain farms at risk by introducing widespread market uncertainty,” said Kyle Larkin, Executive Director of GGC. “The U.S. is by far our largest trading partner, with over $17 billion CAD of Canadian grain and grain products exported to every year. These unjustified tariffs threaten that trade relationship—and farmers’ livelihoods.”
Canada exports over 70% of the grain it produces to over 150 countries around the world. The prices Canadian farmers receive for crops such as wheat, canola, oats, barley, and pulses are tied to international markets. Disruptions to trade networks drive down farmgate prices, making it harder for growers to stay afloat.
25% Tariff on a load of finished cattle leaving Canada to a USA plant
$160000 shipment
Will cost the producer who owned them fed them $40000 today
Unprecedented
This will be a day to remember in Canada
?? ?? can do better #USMCA is over— Ken Schaus ?? (@KenSchaus) March 4, 2025
The Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA) underlined today that the U.S. administration’s decision to impose tariffs on Canadian and Mexican agri-food imports will have negative consequences for Americans, Canadians and Mexicans alike.
“The tariffs announced today leave consumers and businesses in all three countries worse off. They increase costs, disrupt supply chains, and harm American, Canadian, and Mexican consumers and producers,” said Greg Northey, President of CAFTA. “CAFTA will continue to advocate for free and open trade in agriculture and agri-food to benefit consumers, farmers and producers, and we will not relent until order is restored to our integrated North American market.”
North America’s integrated supply chains set the standard for global trade, allowing farmers and food producers to compete on the world stage while keeping prices affordable for families. These unnecessary tariffs threaten to unravel decades of cooperation, raising costs, creating instability, and putting livelihoods at risk.
“Today’s decision has weakened the United States, along with Canada and Mexico,” added Michael Harvey, Executive Director of CAFTA. “CAFTA supports the efforts of the Government of Canada to achieve a lifting of the tariffs and return to focus on a rational, rules-based, free trading system that benefits both producers and consumers, regardless of which side of the border they are on.”
Farmer members of the American Soybean Association have for years consistently maintained their position that they do not support the use of tariffs, which threaten important markets and raise input costs for farmers, as a negotiation tactic. The interconnected nature of agricultural supply chains means tariffs have immediate negative, and in many cases lasting, impacts on their farms and the country’s rural economy.
President Trump’s 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada took effect just after midnight in the early morning hours of March 4. Canada responded swiftly with plans to impose 25% tariffs on nearly $100 billion of U.S. imports over two tranches, and Mexico’s president said it would also soon retaliate. The U.S. added an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports overnight, compounding the 10% export tax imposed on China a month ago and existing duties on the country’s goods. China’s comeback was quick: 10% retaliatory tariffs on U.S. soybeans and additional actions that limit market access.
“Farmers are frustrated. Tariffs are not something to take lightly and ‘have fun’ with. Not only do they hit our family businesses squarely in the wallet, but they rock a core tenet on which our trading relationships are built, and that is reliability. Being able to reliably supply a quality product to them consistently,” said Caleb Ragland, American Soybean Association president and soy farmer from Magnolia, Kentucky.
Ragland explained, “As the #1 export crop for the U.S., soybean producers face huge, disproportionate impacts from trade flow disruptions, particularly to China, which is our largest market. And we know foreign soybean producers in Brazil and other countries are expecting abundant crops this year and are primed to meet any demand stemming from a renewed U.S.-China trade war. Soybean farmers still have not fully recovered market volumes from the damaging impacts of the 2018 trade war, and this will further exacerbate economic hardship on our farmers.”
In the 2023/2024 marketing year, U.S. exporters shipped 46.1 million metric tons (MMT) of soybeans to foreign markets, accounting for nearly $24 billion in sales. During the 2018 trade war with China, U.S. agriculture experienced over $27 billion in losses, with soybeans accounting for 71% of those losses. Soy farmers continue to struggle with long-term reputational impacts, as the markets they worked for years to build—over 40 years for China!—are grounded in being able to supply a reliable, quality crop.
I’m sorry I find it bizzare that out of one side of our mouth we say US tariffs will hurt Americans and then we turn around and say the answer is counter tariffs that hurt Canadians.
I get the temptation but I hope we hear about how we’re going to diversify our market and…
— Mark Bratrud (@markbratrud) March 4, 2025
On behalf of Food and Beverage Canada (FBC-ABC), Food and Beverage Ontario, Food & Beverage Manitoba, Conseil de la transformation alimentaire du Québec (CTAQ), Food & Beverage Atlantic, BC Food & Beverage and the Alberta Food Processors Association, we are highlighting on deep concern regarding the impact of newly imposed U.S. tariffs on Canadian food and beverage manufacturers.
We appreciate the federal and provincial governments’ advocacy and leadership to date in protecting Canada’s interests in the face of the changing relationship with the U.S. As Canada’s food and beverage manufacturing industry plays a critical role in our national economy – representing the largest manufacturing sector by employment and a significant contributor to GDP – such tariffs will have far-reaching consequences for workers, businesses, and consumers across the country.
The U.S. is a key trading partner for our industry, with billions in exports and essential imports supporting our supply chains. To safeguard Canada’s economic interests and protect our food and beverage manufacturing industry as much as possible from the negative impacts of these tariffs, we urge continued efforts towards a strong, coordinated, and strategic response, including:
• Diplomatic and Trade Measures: With tariffs now in place, it is critical to escalate diplomatic efforts to de-escalate trade tensions while also preparing to defend Canadian producers, businesses, and jobs.
• A Unified Team Canada Strategy: A collaborative approach between all levels of government, industry stakeholders, and trade partners to ensure a comprehensive response that prioritizes Canada’s economic interests – in particular, jobs and workers.
• Strategic Tariff Response: Implementing reciprocal tariffs on finished U.S. goods – final, ready-for-sale food and beverage products – rather than essential inputs to protect Canadian manufacturers while minimizing disruptions to supply chains.
• Strengthening Industry Competitiveness: Reducing interprovincial trade barriers to enhance efficiency and support domestic food production, expanding incentives for automation, modernization and production capacity specific to food and beverage manufacturing to ensure the long-term resilience of the industry, introducing Buy-Canadian campaigns to shore up sales for Canadian businesses, and addressing regulatory burdens that limit the competitiveness of Canadian food and beverage manufacturers in both domestic and global markets.
• Support for Affected Businesses and Workers: Providing financial relief measures for food and beverage manufacturers to help them minimize impacts on workers and maintain food production and implementing remission orders to ensure continued access to critical food ingredients, packaging, and processing inputs necessary for the manufacturing of food and beverage.
