U.S. pork begs for tariff exemption from Canada

The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) in the U.S. is urging the Canadian government to remove tariffs on U.S. pork, arguing that reciprocal tariffs could disrupt long-standing supply chains between the two countries. In 2024, the U.S. exported over $850 million worth of pork to Canada, while Canada exported over $1.7 billion of pork to the U.S. and over $560 million worth of live swine. This comes as the U.S. has imposed tariffs on Canadian goods, including agriculture, as part of a trade dispute, with Canada retaliating. The NPPC also criticized President Trump's fluctuating figures on the U.S.-Canada trade deficit.

A national U.S. pork organization is lobbying the Canadian federal government to drop its tariffs on the U.S. pork industry. According to a blog entry on the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) website, the NPPC has written to Canada’s Department of Finance, noting that “tit-for-tat tariff exchanges” will disrupt supply chains built between the two countries over decades. “We request that Canada seeks to preserve the benefits of the integrated North American market to the maximum extent practicable, including by excluding U.S. pork imports from retaliation,” read the missive. U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods, including agriculture, have been the flashpoint of a trade war between the two long-time trading partner nations. Canada has imposed retaliatory tariffs on a range of U.S. products, with more promised if the U.S. doesn’t back down. The council pointed out that the U.S. exported more than US$850 million of pork to Canada in 2024, while Canada sent US$1.7 billion of pork ...