Manitoba farmers brace for price drops amid Trump tariff threat

With U.S. President Donald Trump’s pledge to enforce 25 per cent tariffs connected Canadian imports starting Feb. 1, Manitoba farmers are scrambling to recognize what it means for their products and their livelihoods.

Oats, canola, and soybeans from Colin Penner’s workplace adjacent Elm Creek usually spell close to the United States. Now, he’s not definite wherever they’ll go.

“Our canola, I’ve marketed it to a processor present successful Manitoba, but their last merchandise ends up going into the States.”

Farmers crossed the state are bracing for terms drops. Penner thinks he’ll inactive beryllium capable to wage his bills, but his nett margins volition beryllium slim. He’s besides expecting to wage a batch much for the U.S. products helium needs to tally his farm.

“A batch of our instrumentality comes from the states. So, with the anemic Canadian dollar, that’s going to truly negatively interaction america there,” says Penner. “A batch of our phosphate fertilizers travel from the states. We’ve got that astatine home, it’s successful the bin close now, but for adjacent year, that could truly interaction america negatively.

“Tariffs are going to beryllium atrocious for farmers connected some sides of the line,” helium goes on. “Whether Canadian oregon American, it won’t beryllium positive.”

The U.S. is Canada’s largest trading partner. Manitoba exported $4.5B (CAD) successful agri-foods southbound of the borderline past year.

Colin Hornby, wide manager of Keystone Agricultural Producers, says the marketplace interaction could beryllium massive.

“We person to diversify and look astatine different markets wherever we tin merchantability our stuff,” says Hornby. “There’s speech astir potentially, could the home marketplace successful Canada instrumentality up immoderate of the slack? Well, we don’t needfully person the capableness oregon the request present with Canadian consumers. We’re not a large capable country.”

Hornby says they won’t cognize the afloat interaction until the tariffs footwear in. But helium adds immoderate U.S. atom buyers person pre-emptively stopped oregon slowed down their Canadian purchases.

Trending Now

“It’s not similar there’s a hold to spot what happens. Things person already happened.”

It won’t conscionable beryllium growers that volition struggle, but livestock producers arsenic well. Tyler Fulton, vice-president of the Canadian Cattle Association and a manager with Manitoba Beef Producers, says 35 per cent of each Canadian beef exports are destined for the States.

“It truly throws a wrench into whether oregon not the provender tons tin bargain our cattle, and whether the processors tin merchantability the beef into the mean flows,” says Fulton.

Experts accidental farmers volition person to absorption connected products they person a viable marketplace for, but it’s highly hard to program a way guardant with truthful overmuch uncertainty, causing anxiousness for farmers.

Penner says helium tin program for marketplace variability, and insure himself against atrocious weather, but it’s unclear however helium tin support himself against a menace this big.

“Some of these unsocial security products that volition extremity up, successful the agelong run, costing maine a batch of money, I deliberation they’ll astir apt beryllium the way that I’ll request to go,” helium says.

“It’s just, however bash I insure myself to marque definite that I’m capable to wage my loans and wage myself astatine the extremity of the day.”