Farmers Caught in the Crossfire of U.S.-Canada Trade War

By Hope Kirwan, Harvest Public Media

Harvest Public Media reports that American farmers are bracing for another trade shock after the Trump administration imposed 50% tariffs on roughly $20 billion of Canadian goods, prompting Canada to retaliate with tariffs of its own. Canada bought about $28 billion in U.S. agricultural products last year, making it the country’s second-largest agricultural export market after Mexico. Dairy farmers are particularly exposed: disrupted Canadian sales could leave more milk and dairy products stranded in the domestic market, pushing already-weak prices lower.

At the same time, tariffs on steel, aluminum and machinery components could raise farmers’ equipment costs. The more serious vulnerability may be fertilizer: roughly 85% of the potash used in the United States comes from Canada. Ontario Premier Doug Ford has floated taxing Canadian potash exports as leverage, which economist Jayash Paudel warned could be devastating for U.S. producers already contending with higher nitrogen fertilizer costs from the Iran war. Even without further escalation, he said the uncertainty is already affecting decisions about equipment purchases, operating loans and next year’s planting.

Read more: https://www.kcur.org/environment-agriculture/2026-09-04/u-s-canada-tariffs-farmers-trade-war