Food Producers Ask Trump for 'Significant' Tariffs on Imports of Like Products
A coalition of food producers, including the American Honey Producers Association, the Catfish Farmers of America, the Crawfish Processors Alliance, the Louisiana Farm Bureau Crawfish Committee, and the Southern Shrimp Alliance, sent a letter May 9 asking President Donald Trump to impose tariffs on "unfairly traded imports" of products similar to theirs.
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The coalition said that without "significant tariffs" on these products, their "vital industries risk collapse, undermining rural economies and American agricultural independence." The coalition highlighted the trade practices of Vietnam, China and India, accusing them of closing their markets to U.S. imports while subsidizing exports to the U.S. through dumping and forced labor practices.
To "preserve American agriculture and food security," the associations requested that the president institute "targeted" tariffs on honey from Vietnam, India and other countries, and seafood such as crawfish and shrimp from Vietnam, China and other countries -- and undertake "aggressive enforcement against transshipment, duty evasion, and food safety violations for seafood and honey imports."
In a press release, Steven Coy, president of the American Honey Producers Association, said that “President Trump understands what previous administrations missed -- food security is national security. After 25 years of damaging trade policies, American beekeepers need decisive intervention or [they] face extinction."