By Grant Gerlock
Tariffs on steel and aluminum would increase the cost of farm machinery and structures like steel grain bins.
When President Donald Trump follows through on his plan to tax imported steel and aluminum, American farmers will get less money for some crops and pay more for machinery. There is a slight silver lining for consumers. Prices of some products may drop in the U.S.
Farm groups say their members worry the countries targeted by the tariffs (the list of which has not been finalized by the Trump administration) will tax farm products. The European Union already has threatened imports of corn, rice, cranberries, peanut butter, kidney beans, orange juice and even bourbon, which is usually made from corn.
Canada, the EU and China are large enough customers that a disruption in trade would impact global prices. If they are buying less, “that means that we have more left in the United States and, all things equal, prices will go down,” University of Nebraska-Lincoln agricultural economist Wes Peterson said.
But, he added, tariffs are trade-offs: If consumers get a better deal on food, it’ll be at the expense of farmers, “who would be selling less, and also then would be getting lower prices.”
Farm income is already expected to drop in 2018, to the lowest level since 2006, due to depressed prices for crops like corn and wheat.
And just like cars, appliances and foods packaged in steel and aluminum cans, farmers could end up paying more for farm machinery and equipment, from tractors to grain storage bins to metal machine sheds.
Trump is hoping tariffs on foreign-made steel will make the domestic market more competitive, but already, prices are going up at American mills.
“What we’re seeing is steel prices are very quickly increasing to highs we haven’t seen since 2011 and 2008,” according to Phil Raimondo, president and CEO of Behlen Manufacturing, which uses steel to make buildings, livestock water tanks and grain elevators.
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