3 things in Minnesota that will be impacted by tariffs on Canada

President Donald Trump’s plan to apply 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican exports is set to start Tuesday. He hopes to pressure the countries to stop the flow of drugs and migrants into the U.S.

Mexico and Canada have vowed to retaliate by slapping their own tariffs on U.S. goods, setting the stage for a potential North American trade war.

“Canada and the United States have had free trade for 35 years now and this will be the single most turbulent element of our trading relationship since 1989, so it's very worrying,” said Beth Richardson, the Consul General of Canada to the U.S. in Minneapolis.

Richardson told Minnesota Now host Nina Moini that she’s had business and agricultural associations calling her with concerns. She laid out three everyday impacts Minnesotans could see.

1) Minnesota’s agricultural economy

Canada is Minnesota’s top agriculture and agri-food export market. In 2023, Minnesota exported $1.2 billion to Canada in agriculture and imported $948 million from Canada. Richardson said fertilizer, grain and machinery would all be impacted by tariffs.

2) A tank of gas

Minnesota is almost entirely reliant on its oil supply from Canada, according to Richardson.

“It is refined at two refineries in St. Paul and those refineries are designed to take Canadian crude,” said Richardson.

Gas Buddy estimates gas prices in the Midwest could go up anywhere from 5 to 20 cents per gallon due to tariffs.

3) Beer and canned goods

Trump said he’s removing the exemptions on his 2018 steel and aluminum tariffs. Those are set to be lifted on March 12. America imports most of its aluminum from Canada. Richardson said that will impact the prices of a six-pack of beer and other canned goods.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

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