Booze, tobacco, poultry and more: U.S. items to be tariffed by Canada

Article content

OTTAWA — U.S.-made booze, tobacco, poultry, shampoos, toothpastes, motorcycles, firearms, furniture, ketchup, spices and even chocolate are about to jump in price as the Canadian government unveiled a first list of American items to be hit with 25 per cent retaliatory tariffs as of Tuesday.

Article content

Article content

The wide-spanning list of hundreds of categories of items is the first of two waves of tariffs on a total value of over $150 billion worth of U.S. goods that Canada will be implementing in the coming weeks.

Article content

The first wave of 25 per cent retaliatory tariffs on $30-billion worth of American-made items will kick in on Tuesday, Feb. 4, on the same day as sweeping 25 per cent U.S. tariffs will be applied on all Canadian and Mexican exports.

These tariffs will be in place as long as the U.S. tariffs against Canada remain in effect.

Here are some of the items that will cost 25 per cent more as of Tuesday if they are imported from the U.S.

• Live poultry, such as chicken, ducks, geese, turkeys and guinea fowls as well as their meat.
• Most milk, cream, yogurt, cheese and other dairy products.
• A wide range of fruits and vegetables such as tomatoes, legumes, citrus (oranges, mandarins, lemons), melons, peaches and apricots.
• Many spices and seeds, including ginger, thyme, bay leaves, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and vanilla.
• Grains such as rye, wheat, barley, oats and rice.
• Bottled water, including mineral and flavoured.
• Almost all alcohols, including whisky, beer, wine and other spirits.
• Cosmetics and toiletries such as shampoos, toothpastes, deodorants, shaving creams and soaps.
• Cigarettes, cigars, vapes, nicotine pouches and other similar products.

Article content

Article content

In a background briefing for reporters Sunday, senior government officials said some of the tariffs specifically target U.S. politicians who are considered close to or have the ear of President Donald Trump.

For example, they cited orange juice and certain fruits and vegetables from Florida, Trump’s home state. They also noted household appliances made in South Carolina (represented by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham) and Ohio (home of Vice-President J.D. Vance) and motorcycles and coffee from Pennsylvania (which voted massively for Trump in the past federal election).

None of the tariffed items appeared to target companies or products sold by businessman and close Trump ally Elon Musk, though the officials suggested any such measures could still come in the second, larger round of tariffs in the upcoming weeks.

The officials also noted that the items on this first list were generally consumer items for which Canadians should have access to either local or non-U.S. alternatives.

Article content

Surprisingly, the senior officials could not offer reporters any estimate of the adverse impact on Canada’s GDP from the combined U.S. and Canadian tariffs, saying those models were still a work in progress.

The government also intends to impose tariffs on an additional list of imported U.S. products worth $125 billion. “This second list will be made available in the coming days, for a 21-day public comment period prior to implementation,” reads a news release from Finance Canada.

“It will include products such as passenger vehicles, trucks and buses, steel and aluminum products, certain fruits and vegetables, aerospace products, beef, pork, dairy products, and more.”

The federal government also announced Sunday a remission process that will allow Canadian businesses “to request exceptional relief from the tariffs that are imposed as part of Canada’s response to the U.S. applying unjustified tariffs on Canada.”

To be eligible for a tariff exemption, the importer will have to prove that the item cannot be sourced in Canada or from a non-U.S. source, or that the 25 per cent tariff on the item “could have severe adverse impacts on the Canadian economy.”

Article content

In an interview, former senior Canadian diplomat and lawyer Alan Kessel said that Trump’s tariffs are a total violation of the CUSMA free-trade deal between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.

He compared it to “gunboat diplomacy,” a reference to when a country parks gunboats in front of another country’s key port as an act of coercion and intimidation.

“What we had here is one of the most enviable integrated trade systems that has provided incredible prosperity, wealth and resilience to North America,” said the former assistant deputy minister of legal affairs at Global Affairs Canada.

“It’s a foolish move to undermine that because it takes a minute to destroy and it will take decades to rebuild the trust” the Americans have blown up with their allies, he added.

During a press conference, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre repeated his call to the Liberals to end prorogation in order to debate retaliatory measures against the “unjust and unjustified” U.S. tariffs.

He also said he would support a Liberal bill that namely allows for dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs against U.S. products that can be made in Canada or bought elsewhere, redistributes tariff revenue back to affected workers and businesses and includes “massive” emergency tax cuts on “work, investment home, building energy and making stuff in Canada.”

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Play Video

National Post

[email protected]

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here.

Article content