{"id":4790,"date":"2026-09-20T18:00:27","date_gmt":"2026-09-20T18:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=4790"},"modified":"2026-09-20T18:00:27","modified_gmt":"2026-09-20T18:00:27","slug":"trump-tariffs-hit-canadas-dairy-farmers-as-us-sales-stall-trade-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=4790","title":{"rendered":"Trump tariffs hit Canada\u2019s dairy farmers as US sales stall | Trade War"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Abbotsford, British Columbia<\/strong> \u2013 Every second day, 28,000 litres of raw milk leave Casey Pruim\u2019s farm in Abbotsford in western Canada, entering a distribution system built on the assumption that the milk and the products made from it will have somewhere to go.<\/p>\n

While most is consumed in Canada, some had been sold across the border to the United States.<\/p>\n

Those sales have largely come to a standstill since US President Donald Trump\u2019s 50 percent<\/a> tariff on $20bn in Canadian goods, including dairy products, came into effect on August 22.<\/p>\n

Pruim, who is also chair of the British Columbia Dairy Association representing about 400 dairy farmers across the province, told Al Jazeera that Canadian farmers do not individually decide which products are exported.<\/p>\n

Instead, producers such as Pruim \u2013\u00a0 whose farm has 330 cows milked three times a day\u00a0 \u2013\u00a0 sell into the provincial milk-marketing system, which distributes milk to processors according to demand, including for products exported to the US.<\/p>\n

If a processor loses US demand, it may require less milk, with the impact then spread across the provincial pool.<\/p>\n

Dylan Kruger, director of public affairs at BC Dairy, told Al Jazeera \u201cthere is still considerable uncertainty around the impact of the US tariffs\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said it was too early to know how the industry would be impacted or whether milk no longer sold to the US could be sold elsewhere, mitigating financial losses.<\/p>\n

But the tariffs and wider trade tensions have already introduced uncertainty and instability for businesses.<\/p>\n

\"Casey
Casey Pruim, owner of Prime Acres Ltd dairy farm in Abbotsford, British Columbia, heads the BC Milk Producers Association in Canada\u2019s western province [File: Ali Mustafa\/Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIf the processor who\u2019s exporting some of his product to the United States can no longer sell into that market because he\u2019s now priced out of the market with a 50 percent tariff, that\u2019s how it would impact the dairy farm,\u201d Pruim said.<\/p>\n

Pruim said if processor demand is squeezed, farmers would be forced to dump the milk. In the worst-case scenario, the herd has to be cut.<\/p>\n

\u201cCows aren\u2019t like a tap; you can\u2019t just turn them on or off,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

His warning captures dairy\u2019s particular vulnerability in a tariff war: Milk is highly perishable, collected on a tight schedule and dependent on processors whose demand can change much faster than farmers can adjust production.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese tariffs are completely unwarranted,\u201d David Wiens, president of the Dairy Farmers of Canada, told Canada\u2019s CBC News, adding that they would affect \u201cthe supply chain, not only in Canada but in the US as well\u201d.<\/p>\n

Supply-management system<\/h2>\n

Dairy trade between Canada and the US has largely operated under a free trade agreement between the US, Mexico and Canada, known as CUSMA in Canada.<\/p>\n

Canada manages the supply of dairy, poultry and eggs through a national agricultural policy known as supply management. The system uses production quotas and import controls, including tariffs, to provide farmers with more stable and predictable prices while maintaining domestic supply.<\/p>\n

Critics describe the system as protectionist and as a government-backed cartel.<\/p>\n

Washington argues that Canada\u2019s supply-management system restricts US dairy exports. Trump posted on Truth Social that \u201cCanada had been ripping off the United States of America for years\u201d and accused it of imposing \u201cridiculously high tariffs\u201d that made life impossible for US farmers.<\/p>\n

Canadian producers reject that argument, saying the existing trade agreement already gives US imports substantial tariff-free access that is not fully utilised.<\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s dairy trade deficit with the US has grown significantly since CUSMA came into force on July 1, 2020, according to the Dairy Processors Association of Canada.<\/p>\n

In 2020, Canada exported 241.3 million Canadian dollars ($173m) in dairy products to the US and imported 647.4 million Canadian dollars ($462.7m) worth of dairy and dairy products. In 2025, Canadian dairy exports had risen to 308.7 million Canadian dollars ($220.7m) while dairy imports from the US had more than doubled to 1.355 billion Canadian dollars ($968.5m), accounting for 13.8 percent of total value of US dairy exports, according to the association.<\/p>\n

\"Each
Nearly 14,000 litres of milk are stored daily in the refrigeration unit at Casey Pruim\u2019s farm in Abbotsford, British Columbia, at a temperature of 2.8\u2019C [File: Ali Mustafa\/Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bryan Yu, chief economist at Central 1 credit union, said the immediate shock of losing a major market could be difficult for Canadian producers to absorb because replacement buyers cannot be found quickly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is going to be pain in the near term for a lot of our producers,\u201d Yu told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou really can\u2019t quickly adjust to a 50 percent tariff, because it\u2019s uncharted waters for a lot of industries \u2026 and ultimately it shuts [Canadian producers] out, because a lot of them don\u2019t have the margins that they can play with,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Yu said Canadian consumers might absorb some of the additional supply while exporters search for new markets and higher-value products, but neither adjustment is instantaneous.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are global markets as well, especially when you talk about chilled, chilled beef, chilled products and really it\u2019s a question of whether \u2026 other types of markets that could be available.\u201d<\/p>\n

Canada has also imposed retaliatory tariffs, which came into effect on September 8 and cover $20bn worth of US products.<\/p>\n

Dairy products are among the targeted goods. The list includes a 50 percent tariff on milk, cream and whey products and a 25 percent tariff on many cheeses imported from the US.<\/p>\n

\"Casey
Casey Pruim has a herd of 330 cows at his dairy farm in Abbotsford, British Columbia [File: Ali Mustafa\/Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has framed Ottawa\u2019s response as both retaliation and an attempt to build greater economic resilience.<\/p>\n

Announcing the collapse of the latest negotiations, he said Canada would match Washington\u2019s new tariffs \u201cdollar for dollar\u201d to protect workers, farmers, families and businesses.<\/p>\n

But retaliatory measures carry risks of their own.<\/p>\n

\u201cCanada\u2019s new retaliatory tariffs will help some industries but hurt most and weaken economic growth across the country by raising costs for producers and consumers,\u201d Oxford Economics said in a report.<\/p>\n

For now, geography remains important for perishable goods like dairy products that once moved quickly across the US border and cannot be redirected overnight to a distant market without new buyers, logistics and regulatory approvals.<\/p>\n

Ottawa\u2019s Trade Commissioner Service is advising affected companies to check their CUSMA compliance, explore available relief and contact trade commissioners about potential new markets.<\/p>\n

Yu predicted that the US and Canada could reach a tariff deal in the following months but said the interim period could bring \u201chigher prices, weaker economic activity and deeper mistrust\u201d.<\/p>\n

For Pruim, the uncertainty is as destabilising as the tariff threat itself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think, like [for] any Canadian, it\u2019s disappointing to have these trade talks collapse again and just the uncertainty around it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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Abbotsford, British Columbia \u2013 Every second day, 28,000 litres of raw milk leave Casey Pruim\u2019s farm in Abbotsford in western Canada, entering a distribution system built on the assumption that the milk and the products made from it will have somewhere to go. While most is consumed in Canada, some had been sold across the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4791,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4790","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-international-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t