Trump Delays Some Mexico, Canada Tariffs, Lowers Potash Duty

By Ryan Hanrahan

Agri-Pulse’s Oliver Ward reported that “President Donald Trump signed two executive orders on Thursday postponing tariffs for products arriving from Mexico and Canada that are covered by a North American trade pact by a month, while lowering the duty to be applied to potash imports.”

“‘Anything that was covered under the [U.S.-Mexico-Canada] agreement is exempt from the 25% tariff,’ until April 2, a White House official told Agri-Pulse, including potash. ‘There’s still the 10% energy tariff,’ the official added, referring to the lower duty applied to Canadian energy exports,” Ward reported. “The president has also decided to reduce the duty rate that will apply to Canadian potash not included in the USMCA to 10%, the official said.”

“The text of the executive order, however, makes no mention of the April 2 deadline, and only includes language excluding USMCA-covered products from the duties and lowering the duties for non-covered potash to 10%. The White House official told Agri-Pulse however, that the president will reassess the exemption at that time,” Ward reported. “‘It’s up to his discretion,’ the official said. ‘That’s just when everything will be reconsidered.'”

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins wrote on the social media website X that Trump’s “decision to grant a lower 10% tariff on any potash imported from Canada or Mexico that falls outside the USMCA preference is strategic. It will keep negotiations on track and ensure farmers can buy much needed fertilizer at the lowest price possible at the height of planting season.”

What is Included in the USMCA Exemption?

CBS News’ Megan Cerullo reported that “the USMCA agreement covers the vast majority of imports from Mexico. In a press conference Thursday, Sheinbaum said that nearly all of Mexico’s trade with the U.S. is covered under the trade pact which is in effect until April 2.”

“In 2023, the U.S. imported more than $45 billion worth of agricultural products from Mexico. Almost three-quarters of such imports consisted of vegetables, fruit, beer, tequila and other drinks and spirits, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture,” Cerullo reported. “According to a White House official, in 2024, 38% of all imports from Canada were covered by the USMCA and therefore exempt from tariffs, while 49.6% of all imports from Mexico were covered under the agreement.”

“International trade expert Barry Appleton, a senior fellow at the Center for International Law at New York Law School, told CBS MoneyWatch that ‘a massive amount of goods’ fall under the brief exemption from tariffs on imports from Canada,” Cerullo reported. “They include auto parts, steel and aluminum, beef and other products.”

Lawmakers Remain Concerned for Farmers Despite Tariff Postponment

Ward reported that “multiple lawmakers have been pushing the White House to exempt critical farm inputs from the tariffs over concerns they could lead to higher prices for U.S. farmers.”

“House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson, R-Pa., told Agri-Pulse on Thursday that he has been speaking to ‘as many people as I possibly can’ in the White House about the issue,” Ward reported. “‘I’ve just been making the point that, like we have the car industry and Canadian-produced oil that comes to the United States, and things like potash and fertilizer, are all in our strategic importance,’ Thompson said.”

“On Thursday, Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., led 14 of her colleagues in writing to the president to express concerns over the impact of the tariffs on the farm economy,” Ward reported. “‘On top of shutting farmers out of critical export markets, these tariffs will drive up input costs,’ the senators wrote.”

“Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley also told reporters this week that he was hoping for tariff exemptions for Canadian piglets, as well as potash,” Ward reported.