French champagne and Italian parmesan could become unaffordable for most American consumers if the Donald Trump administration imposes a 25% tariff. European producers believe that tariffs on these products will force Americans to abandon them in favor of cheaper local equivalents, the Financial Times reports.
“The consequences in terms of sales volume could be significant“, the publication quotes Filippo Margi, CEO of Italian dairy company Granarolo, which exports Parmesan to the United States. Even without the tariffs, Parmesan rose to 15 EUR per kilogram last year due to rising raw material prices, according to Margi. "The new tariffs could increase wholesale prices by nearly 50%, making the product affordable only to the wealthiest buyers," Margi said.
As the publication notes, the United States remains the largest export market for French wines and other spirits. "We will have to look for other markets", admitted Alexandre Charton, owner of Chartogne-Taillet, which exports 30% of its production to the United States.
The Italian farmers' association Coldiretti estimates that American consumers will have to pay an additional €2 billion for Italian delicacies, including wine, cheese, olive oil and prosciutto, if Trump imposes tariffs. "For some products, there are no local equivalents", said association representative Luigi Scordamaglia. “This is a losing choice, and I hope the US will analyze the situation very carefully before making such a decision.“
On March 4, the US administration imposed a 25% tariff on almost all imports from Canada and Mexico, and also raised tariffs on goods from China from 10% to 20%. On March 6, Trump signed executive orders to postpone until April 2 the imposition of 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico that fall under the trilateral trade agreement. He indicated that there will be no such relief after that date.
In addition, Trump previously announced his intention to impose retaliatory tariffs on imported goods from April 2. On average, the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico and Canada impose much higher tariffs on the US than the US imposes on them.