(Clive, Iowa) May 17, 2019 – The U.S. government announced May 17 that it is lifting the 25 percent tariff on steel and the 10 percent duty on aluminum imports that had been imposed last year on Canada and Mexico.

“Iowa pork producers thank the Trump administration for ending the tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Mexico and Canada. This is a change we have been requesting since last fall because retaliatory tariffs by Mexico had the effect of reducing U.S. pork exports to one of our top markets,” said Trent Thiele, president of the Iowa Pork Producers Association. Thiele is a pig farmer from Elma, Iowa.

“Mexico’s 20 percent retaliatory tariff on U.S. pork has cost our producers $12 per animal,” Thiele said, referring to an impact study by ag economist Dermot Hayes of Iowa State University. “Removing the metal tariffs restores zero-tariff trade to U.S. pork’s largest export market. This allows Iowa pig farmers to now focus our energies on convincing Congress to ratify the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).”

Without removing the metal tariffs, even a ratified USMCA could not have done away with the retaliatory measures.

“That’s why the metal tariffs were of such concern to us,” Thiele said. “We want to thank the entire Iowa congressional delegation for standing behind us on this concern. We especially want to thank Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst for taking that message directly to President Trump.”

Last year, Canada and Mexico purchased more than 40 percent of pork that was exported from the United States. Iowa is the top state for pork exports, and produces nearly one-third of the pork produced in the United States.

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About the Iowa Pork Producers Association

The mission of the Iowa Pork Producers Association is promoting, educating and providing a leading voice for a sustainable, socially responsible, and globally competitive pork industry.

Media Contact: Dal Grooms, Communications Director, 800-372-7675, dgrooms@iowapork.org