Canada’s East Coast seafood industry is relieved as the federal government has excluded U.S. fish and seafood products from its counter-tariff list. The government made this adjustment following feedback, a day after imposing counter-tariffs on $27.6 billion worth of U.S. goods in response to new 50% tariffs by the U.S. on similar products. Initially, many seafood items were on the list, subject to a 25% tax rate.
The industry expressed concerns over the potential devastating effects of these countermeasures, which were unrelated to the trade war until the recent announcement. Industry leaders welcomed the removal of tariffs, emphasizing the close integration of the industry across borders. The Executive Director of the Lobster Processors Association highlighted the importance of American-caught lobster processed in Canadian plants before being exported back to the U.S.
Apart from lobster, nearly all seafood items imported by Canada were on the retaliatory tariff list, raising significant concerns. The Executive Director of the New Brunswick Crab Processors Association noted worries about the industry being targeted, potentially leading to further tariffs. Snow crab, a major export to the U.S., remains untariffed on the American side, a vital point for the industry’s stability.
While some measures were rolled back, the government maintains a dollar-for-dollar response to U.S. products, adding new items like copper wire and charcoal to the tariff list. Despite these changes, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne emphasized that the decision to remove seafood tariffs was in Canada’s best interest after listening to Canadians, without directly addressing the implications on U.S. relations.