President Trump has pushed the rollout of his tariff plan back to March 4th, but they are still full speed ahead. While ag lawmakers are largely supportive, some warn farmers and ranchers could become targets.
“I do have a cautionary note always with tariffs because, historically, if we impose tariffs on another country, a lot of times we will see a retaliatory effort on their part. And nine times out of ten, the target for those retaliations is right at America’s breadbasket, our agricultural economy,” said Representative Dan Newhouse.
The Farm Bureau is also worried about retaliation. They have been watching the situation closely and say unless something changes, everything takes effect next Tuesday.
“If we do that, Canada’s retaliatory tariffs would also enter into force next Tuesday. Canada has also stated previously that if the tariffs were to remain in effect, they’ll impose further tariffs on an additional 125 billion dollars of U.S. products, which could expand to all U.S. agricultural products exported to Canada,” said AFBF Economist Betty Resnick.
Prior to last month’s pause, Canada listed a number of goods that would face retaliatory tariffs including proteins, row crops, and processed foods like chocolate, pasta, and soup.
