by Dick Hall-Sizemore

Virginia farmers will soon feel the effect of President Trump’s 25 percent across-the-board tariffs on all imports from Canada and Mexico and an additional 10 percent tariff on products from China.

According to the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer services, the top two export markets for Viriginia agricultural products in 2023 were China and Canada. The two countries purchased a total of $1.3 billion in agricultural products from Virginia farmers. The two top agricultural exports were soybeans and pork. Wood products and poultry were next in line.

China has announced a 15 percent tariff on chicken, wheat, corn and cotton and a 10 percent tariff on sorghum, soybeans, pork, beef, fruits, vegetables and dairy and fish products. Canada has announced it would impose a 25 percent tariff, but has not specified the products that would be targeted. Mexico has promised a response later this week.

Not only will Virginia farmers have to face decreasing sales due to the tariffs imposed by the other countries, they will be hit by U.S. tariffs on farm expenses. For example, potash is a key ingredient in fertilizer. According to the United States Geological Service, the United States imported ninety-three percent of the potash it consumed in 2024. For the 2020-2023 period, 79 percent of that imported potash came from Canada. (The second import source was Russia, at 11 percent.) The Trump tariff of 25 percent on that Canadian potash will largely be paid by farmers, including Virginia farmers. As Ken Seitz, the chief executive of Nutrien, a Canadian fertilizer company and the largest producer of potash in the world, said in regard to American tariffs, “The U.S. farmer will feel those impacts after the spring planting season.”