U.S. is bullying Canada with Tariffs?? Oh wait, Canada imposed this on the U.S. last year.

Would you believe these insane tariffs that the U.S. is bullying Canada with

250% for milk
291% for butter
208% for whey
241% for CHEESE

Oh wait - those are actually tariffs that Canada imposed on the U.S. last year.

Kaizen D. Asiedu -

Adding some context here: there are two types of tariffs - overquota and underquota. Canada and the U.S. have a trade deal (USMCA) wherein underquota there are 0% tariffs. The overquota rates are what I cited in the video - much higher in favor of Canada.

The point of the video is that very few people are in a position to have an opinion on this topic, which requires expertise and consideration of multiple domains of expertise.

Tariffs are being spun as bullying, or people are overly confident about the impact they’ll have, and the goal of this video is to hold up a mirror and illustrate the larger dynamics at play.

Some people didn’t like the fact that when I made this video, I didn’t mention that these tariffs only apply after US exports to Canada hit a quota.

People seem determined to argue that not mentioning the quota fundamentally changes the point I made in the video.

It doesn’t.

The quotas are only hit 5% of the time.

But that’s because Canada disincentivizes American farmers from even hitting the quota.

Canada uses production quotas, price controls, and import restrictions to match supply with domestic demand, ensuring stable prices for Canadian farmers.

This system inherently limits foreign competition, as Canada prioritizes self-sufficiency in these sectors.

The quotas under USMCA are structured in a way that makes it difficult for U.S. exporters to fully utilize them.

One major issue (from an American perspective) is how Canada administers these quotas. The U.S. has repeatedly argued that Canada allocates the majority of quota access—sometimes 80-85%—to Canadian processors rather than making it available to a broader range of importers, like retailers or food service providers.

This practice, which has been the subject of multiple USMCA dispute panels, limits the ability of U.S. producers to sell directly to end users who might pay higher prices, forcing them to sell to processors at lower rates.

So the quotas are rarely hit, but it’s not because U.S. farmers don’t want to hit them. It’s because Canada has protectionist policies that even make hitting the quotas difficult.

(Reposted by Elon Musk)