NMPF, USDEC Call for Targeted Tariffs, Trade Negotiations
April 3, 2025
Dairy leaders called for a targeted approach to tariffs and an emphasis on positive negotiations with most trading partners as the Trump Administration moved ahead with a plan for stepped-up tariffs worldwide on Tuesday.
“Tariffs can be a useful tool for negotiating fairer terms of trade,” said NMPF President & CEO Gregg Doud in a joint statement with U.S. Dairy Export Council President & CEO Krysta Harden released earlier today. “We are glad to see the administration focusing on long-time barriers to trade that the European Union and India have imposed on our exports. The administration has rightly noted both countries’ penchants for restricting sales of American products.
“In fact, 20% reciprocal tariffs are a bargain for the EU considering the highly restrictive tariff and nontariff barriers the EU imposes on our dairy exporters,” Doud continued. “If Europe retaliates against the United States, we encourage the administration to respond strongly by raising tariffs on European cheeses and butter. We also appreciate the President’s recognition of the sizable barriers facing U.S. dairy exports into the Canadian market.
“Through productive negotiations, this administration can help achieve a level playing field for U.S. dairy producers by tackling the numerous tariff and nontariff trade barriers that bog down our exports,” Doud said. “As the administration moves forward with negotiations on these tariffs, we encourage prioritizing getting back to fully open trade with U.S. FTA partners, targeting actors who have long put up entrenched barriers to American exports, and swiftly negotiating constructive outcomes with those we know are working for a long-term, fruitful relationship with American farmers.”
President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that the United States will impose a baseline 10 percent additional tariff on imports from all countries later this week, with a higher additional tariff taking effect next week on dozens of other countries the United States believes have the most unfair trade relationships with the U.S.
The new duties include a 34 percent tariff on China, 26 percent on India, 26 percent on South Korea, 24 percent on Japan and 20 percent on the European Union. Canada and Mexico, the two largest U.S. dairy trade partners, are currently exempted from the latest round of tariffs because both countries’ non-USMCA-compliant products already are subject to 25 percent tariffs that Trump imposed, then largely suspended, last month.
