AFBF Reacts To The Latest Round Of Tariffs

Following President Trump’s announcement of reciprocal tariffs last week, Dave Salmonsen, senior director of government affairs for the American Farm Bureau Federation, noted there are two sets of tariffs to keep in mind.

“One is a 10% tariff on all goods, imports.  That will be something that affects every country in the world," Salmonsen said.  "Secondly, there are some specific tariffs particular to a set of countries, say tariffs with China will now be 34%.  Tariffs on a country such as Vietnam will be 46 percent, so that is a different calculation which takes into account the tariffs that are put on the U.S. from those countries.”

Salmonsen said tariffs will go into effect quickly, though consumers may not see impacts right away.  He said the main concern for U.S. farmers and ranchers is that trading partners could retaliate with increased tariffs on American commodities.

“The U.S. has already put 20% additional tariffs this year on China," Salmonsen noted.  "They have retaliated by increasing their tariffs on several U.S. ag products, and several other countries, maybe they will retaliate by increasing tariffs on U.S. exports, including agriculture.”

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