Farm Bureau President: "Trying to Remain Calm" on Tariffs
A barn painted with the American flag on a farm in Iroquois County. (Photo: Chicago Tribune)
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Before a last minute pull back from President Donald Trump Monday, Illinois farmers were preparing for new tariffs to take effect Tuesday on products imported from Canada, Mexico, and China.
Illinois Farm Bureau President Brian Duncan said the fear for Illinois farmers are retaliatory tariffs from the three countries on U.S. ag products like corn, soybeans, pork, and beef.
Canada, for instance, had announced tariffs on American poultry, pork, dairy, and wheat, as well as potash, a key component to fertilizer for American farmers.
The Canadian government also pulled back on the tariffs at the last moment when they reached an agreement with the U.S. to delay new tariffs.
“I’m trying to remain calm,” Duncan said. “[I’m] trying to get a read on it and get the resources to see not only what the tariffs look like, but what the [retaliation] is going to be.”
Duncan says it appears the tariffs violate the U.S.-Canada-Mexico Trade Agreement (USMCA), which Trump signed in 2018.
“I think we’ve got some significant issues with this approach,” Duncan said.
Illinois exports roughly one third of its corn crop and ag exports from Illinois totaled around $14 billion in 2022, according to the USDA.
“The President campaigned on this and I don’t think there’s really any surprise this is happening,” Duncan said. “We have to contemplate how to effectively communicate the impacts of this to the Trump administration.
The tariffs did receive a 30-day reprieve, and Duncan says farmers will have to remind the President of his support among the ag community and to make sure the White House is aware of negative effects of a trade war on farmers.
“At gut level, it feels like there could be some rough waters ahead,” Duncan said.
You an hear our visit with Duncan Monday here.
