Ag industry varies in response

“For too long, America’s family farmers and ranchers have been mistreated by certain trading partners around the world,” said Ethan Lane, senior vice president for government affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) in a formal response to the announcement. “President Trump is taking action to address numerous trade barriers that prevent consumers overseas from enjoying high-quality, wholesome American beef.”

Numerous countries impose tariff and non-tariff trade barriers on American beef that inhibit opportunities to export the high-quality product produced in the United States, he noted. For example,

• Australia has sold roughly $29 billion of beef to American consumers. Meanwhile, the United States has not been able to sell $1 of fresh U.S. beef in Australia due to non-scientific barriers.
• Vietnam places a 30% tariff on U.S. beef, while Australian beef faces no such tariff.
• Thailand places a 50% tariff on U.S. beef.
• Brazil and Paraguay have a history of dangerous foot-and-mouth (FMD) disease, but despite evidence of the animal health risk, the Biden administration continued to allow U.S. market access to Brazil and Paraguay.
• The European Union places numerous non-scientific “Green Deal” restrictions on American beef, limiting market opportunities.

“NCBA will continue engaging with the White House to ensure fair treatment for America’s cattle producers around the world and optimize opportunities for exports abroad,” Lane said.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) took a different tone.

“One thing is certain: American family farmers and ranchers will bear the brunt of this global trade war,” said NFU President Rob Larew in a statement released after the announcement. “The economic strain and uncertainty that farmers face have reached a breaking point. Without meaningful support and a commitment to fair trade policies, we will lose even more family farms, weaken rural economies, and ultimately drive up costs and limit choices for consumers at the grocery store.”

In anticipation of the announcement, NFU and 17 other ag organizations, sent a letter to the administration April 1 urging a trade approach to strengthen American agriculture rather than destabilize it.

“We rely on stable markets and fair competition to thrive, but the administration’s actions today create instability at the expense of our family farmers,” Larew said. “Policymakers must recognize that the consequences of these decisions extend far beyond the farm — our entire food system and the communities it sustains are at stake.”

R-CALF USA applauded President Trump’s universal 10% tariff on all imported goods stating the tariffs are needed to reverse the ongoing and rapid contraction of the U.S. cattle and sheep industries.

“Our nation’s cattle and sheep sectors are losing farms and ranches at an alarming rate, with census data showing our beef cattle operations disappeared at the rate of over 21,000 farms and ranches per year during the five-year period between the two latest censuses,” said R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard. “Tariffs will help put an end to the globalists’ practice of using cheaper imports to reduce demand for domestic cattle and sheep, which causes domestic farms and ranches to fail.”

R-CALF USA has been aggressively supporting livestock tariffs as legitimate economic tools to rebuild domestic livestock industries so America can remain near self-sufficient in the production of beef and lamb, two important protein sources for American diets.

The group is also asking for tariff-rate quota systems to complement tariffs. Tariff-rate quotas are limits set on the volume of imported beef or lamb that can enter the U.S. market.

“Trade is critical to the success of farmers and ranchers across the country,” American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall weighed in. “We share the administration’s goal of leveling the playing field with our international partners, but increased tariffs threaten the economic sustainability of farmers who have lost money on most major crops for the past three years.

Duvall noted exports account for more than 20% of farm income, as well as providing supplies such as fertilizer and specialized tools.

“Tariffs will drive up the cost of critical supplies, and retaliatory tariffs will make American-grown products more expensive globally. The combination not only threatens farmers’ competitiveness in the short-term, but it may cause long-term damage by leading to losses in market share,” he said, encouraging swift resolution to trade disagreements.

Political banter

The Senate took action Wednesday, April 2, passing S.J. Res. 37, a joint resolution to terminate the national emergency declared to impose duties on articles imported from Canada, on a vote of 51-48-1. Republican senators Susan Collins of Maine, Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted with all Democrats and Independents in favor of the resolution. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) did not cast a vote.

According to a CBS News report, the vote is largely symbolic as the House is not expected to take up the resolution.

As the four Senate Republicans broke rank with Trump’s agenda, a Democrat Congressman  from Maine offered support, pointing out he had previously introduced similar legislation. Jared Golden on Jan. 16, 2025, introduced the BUILT USA Act  to incentivize American manufacturing, address the nation’s trade deficit, and create jobs by levying a 10% tariff on all imports.

“America must once again become a nation of producers, not just consumers,” Golden said when introducing the legislation. “Decades of globalization have transformed our country from an industrial superpower to one that relies on other countries for basic goods. To secure our future in an increasingly competitive world, we must move toward self-sufficiency, industrial strength and the homegrown innovation that goes hand-in-hand with a strong, productive economy.”

Upon enactment, the BUILT USA Act (formally the Balance Unequal International Labor and Trade for the United States of America Act) would assess a 10% tariff to all goods and services imported into the United States. Each subsequent calendar year, this duty would increase or decrease by 5% depending on whether America maintains a trade deficit or surplus, respectively.

“Our country’s going to boom,” President Trump told reporters Thursday, April 3, citing trillions of dollars coming into the country because of the tariffs even as the stock market here and abroad posted significant losses.

Multiple news sources have reported that, as several countries reached out to make deals with President Trump, China announced it would enact a 34% tariff on U.S. goods April 10.

Editor’s note: Compiled from available news releases and official statements. [Lead photo by AFBF Photo, Mike Tomko.]

Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA, Vol. 17, No. 4-A